READING RESPONSE- FAITHFUL ELEPHANTS by Yukio Tsuchiya
The year is 1944. World War II has been going on for three years now. Much of your home is destroyed and your family, torn. But your leader is telling you to carry out a task isn't morale, but would you do it? How much would you risk for war? That's exactly same position the characters had to take in "Faithful Elephants."
Faithful Elephants is a tale about an unfortunate event where zookeepers were forced to kill many animals in the zoo so they couldn't be set free by bombs during the war. The author wrote this story to portray the surprising actions people take in distress.
As the story begins the zookeepers are reluctant to do their job because their feelings towards the animals. For example, the author told us of how much the elephants John, Tonky, and Wanly were loved by providing us with details of their preferences and their lively life at the zoo. Another example is thatthe zookeepers try to find another option aside from killing them. They wanted to send the elephants off to Sendai far away from Tokyo. But they soon came to realize the bombs could fall on Sendai as well. This evidence leads me to believe that it's human nature not perform a task unwillingly and less it was your only option.
While the elephants are being starved the author provided specific details about their condition to make you feel certain way. For example, Yukio Tsuchiya states that their eyes looked more like rubber balls to emphasize pain. He also described their morale like it was waning. I believe he betrayed the elephants like this so the reader would sympathize their condition and want to change to be made. We as the reader could also try to understand the zookeepers thinking behind their decision to starve the elephants.
In Faithful Elephants symbolism is used to gain a deeper reaction to the story and the keepers. For example, in the beginning the setting is a beautiful spring day and the cherry blossoms are blooming. The newly bloom cherry blossoms symbolize the postwar era, where difficult choices are things the past. Also the story mentions a tombstone to commemorate all the animals that have died at Ueno Zoo. I think the tombstone represents the guilt that the trainers felt about killing elephants during the war. This leads me understand that when you're guilty about something it helps to take action to reduce the feeling.
After Tonky and Wanly pass away the zookeeper's are extremely upset about the war. For example, they shake their fists at the sky and shout "Stop the war!" They do this because the war caused them to hurt something that they felt close to. Also, the war made them hate authority. When under pressure or strict ruling, people tend to make decisions that lead to unpleasant results. This story helps one understand the doing what is ordered isn't always as best as doing what is right.
Overall, Faithful Elephants is a tale that has a meaningful message, the message of war an it's effects on our loved ones and duties. Faithful Elephant's descriptive language and beauty helps the reader learn the life lesson. The zookeepers and others made many sacrifices and faced strange situations during the war. Today people still deal with the hardships of war for the greater good.
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Faithful Elephants is a tale about an unfortunate event where zookeepers were forced to kill many animals in the zoo so they couldn't be set free by bombs during the war. The author wrote this story to portray the surprising actions people take in distress.
As the story begins the zookeepers are reluctant to do their job because their feelings towards the animals. For example, the author told us of how much the elephants John, Tonky, and Wanly were loved by providing us with details of their preferences and their lively life at the zoo. Another example is thatthe zookeepers try to find another option aside from killing them. They wanted to send the elephants off to Sendai far away from Tokyo. But they soon came to realize the bombs could fall on Sendai as well. This evidence leads me to believe that it's human nature not perform a task unwillingly and less it was your only option.
While the elephants are being starved the author provided specific details about their condition to make you feel certain way. For example, Yukio Tsuchiya states that their eyes looked more like rubber balls to emphasize pain. He also described their morale like it was waning. I believe he betrayed the elephants like this so the reader would sympathize their condition and want to change to be made. We as the reader could also try to understand the zookeepers thinking behind their decision to starve the elephants.
In Faithful Elephants symbolism is used to gain a deeper reaction to the story and the keepers. For example, in the beginning the setting is a beautiful spring day and the cherry blossoms are blooming. The newly bloom cherry blossoms symbolize the postwar era, where difficult choices are things the past. Also the story mentions a tombstone to commemorate all the animals that have died at Ueno Zoo. I think the tombstone represents the guilt that the trainers felt about killing elephants during the war. This leads me understand that when you're guilty about something it helps to take action to reduce the feeling.
After Tonky and Wanly pass away the zookeeper's are extremely upset about the war. For example, they shake their fists at the sky and shout "Stop the war!" They do this because the war caused them to hurt something that they felt close to. Also, the war made them hate authority. When under pressure or strict ruling, people tend to make decisions that lead to unpleasant results. This story helps one understand the doing what is ordered isn't always as best as doing what is right.
Overall, Faithful Elephants is a tale that has a meaningful message, the message of war an it's effects on our loved ones and duties. Faithful Elephant's descriptive language and beauty helps the reader learn the life lesson. The zookeepers and others made many sacrifices and faced strange situations during the war. Today people still deal with the hardships of war for the greater good.
Sent from my iPhone
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