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The Raft

In: English and Literature

Submitted By muhammadaliawan
Words 1190
Pages 5
Muhammad Ali Awan
Professor Wood
Eng 102-24
02/03/2012
The Raft The essay, “The Raft,” by Peter Orner tells of his encounter with his grandfather who, yet again, wants to tell him a story he has told him many times before. A story from his past, from the days of World War 2 during which he was on active duty in the United States Navy. Orner uses vivid imagery and afferent details in his essay to make the deeper meaning he presents in this essay more definite to the reader. He does so at various occasions. This can be noticed when he mentions the Japanese men on the raft, his description of their condition almost parallels that of Japan itself at the end of the war. Then when we see him mention what actions were taken against these men, this can be seen as a correlation to the harsh actions taken against Japan at the end of the war. Also when he mentions the part where his grandfather takes him into his closet, where he continues his story, correlates to a confession chamber in church. This image adds to another meaning that he depicts in his essay for which he also presents many other images. He puts in question the actions of his grandfather and how they reflect upon his character. Orner’s use of distinct imagery points to a deeper meaning in every part of his essay. Throughout his telling of the tale we can clearly see that he is trying to tell us more than what he is saying. One such occasion is seen when, through the words of his grandfather he describes the condition of the Japanese men his grandfather came across. His grandfather, who was the captain of a battleship during World War 2, describes the incident of when he was asked to handle a situation. An object was spotted approaching the ship he captained which caused alarm. It turned out to be a number of Japanese men afloat a raft. Orner’s grandfather said that their condition “looked like

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