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Literary Devices
Genre
Explanation and Analysis:
“An Episode of War” is a short story that belongs to a genre called “naturalism.” Naturalism as a literary movement was centered on stories of people trapped by their circumstances and forced to live at the whims of nature (often depicted as an indifferent and all-powerful force). Characters in naturalist stories often have their individual growth or development thwarted by external forces, such that they end up worse-off than they began.
The naturalist elements in “An Episode of War” include the fact that the lieutenant starts out in a peaceful, almost joyful state—dividing up coffee for his subordinates in what the narrator humorously refers to as “a great triumph of mathematics”—and ends up a traumatized amputee looked upon with both pity and ire. A stray bullet to his arm changes everything about his life: he loses his status among his comrades along with his arm.
The forest that looms over the setting of the story also adds to the naturalist nature of "An Episode of War." The narrator refers to it as “a hostile wood,” given the way it hides and shields the enemy troops from view. In this way, the forest acts as an indifferent yet powerful force that brings harm to the lieutenant.
Related Themes:
