[d_aan]

Hi, was looking for a bit of help.

Could anybody help me with an idea? I know that eyes are the 'windows to the soul' but in the context of war what could it symbolise?

Example, eyes have gone cold, or eyes have turned white - apart from death does it symbolise anything else?

[iSoftie]

Eyes are eyes dude <.<


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[philistine]

Ahh, literary analysis: the revenge of the intellectual upon art.

[Fusion]

Thousand yard stare - stress, shock, heartbreak

[JollyGreenAtheist]

Depends what they're doing and what they're described as, I guess.

If they're grey, in the context of war, perhaps the writer uses this technique to reflect the lifelessness of the battlefield or the lack of definition and hope for soldiers.

If they're staring, perhaps it implies a fixation that relates to the highly controlled, regimented lifestyle of the soldier, and how unnerving it is.

Just make **** up.

[sammy-lou]

(Original post by d_aan)
Hi, was looking for a bit of help.

Could anybody help me with an idea? I know that eyes are the 'windows to the soul' but in the context of war what could it symbolise?

Example, eyes have gone cold, or eyes have turned white - apart from death does it symbolise anything else?

Think of the emotions associated with war. You're right about the eyes being the windows to the soul. So the 'eyes going cold' can symbolise the feeling of numbness at war. loss, horror, fear, tiredness.

Or it could symbolise a cold heart? How the man has become a sort of killing machine because he's been at war for so long.

It all depends on the context of the poem - what the poem is trying to say. If that doesn't help then post the poem/paragraph if you can and we could probably help a bit more?

[Fusionary]

The soldiers' eyes represent direction, awareness and open-mindness. When they close their eyes however in a bid to pray for victory, just like their vision is temporarily gone, as are their futile efforts highlighted in their now literal "lack of awareness" and narrow-mindedness. You could argue they are relying on the premise of "blind faith". You could link praying/closing eyes with this sort of idea.

[d_aan]

(Original post by JollyGreenAtheist)
Depends what they're doing and what they're described as, I guess.

If they're grey, in the context of war, perhaps the writer uses this technique to reflect the lifelessness of the battlefield or the lack of definition and hope for soldiers.

If they're staring, perhaps it implies a fixation that relates to the highly controlled, regimented lifestyle of the soldier, and how unnerving it is.

Just make **** up.

Thanks for the comments. One of the quotes is from a book called Spies. Where a young boy who has been indoctrinated by war propaganda is threatening another boy and all the victim can see are "his eyes which have turned cold" - This I think ties in with what you said about the 'controlled soldier' ?

(Original post by sammy-lou)
Think of the emotions associated with war. You're right about the eyes being the windows to the soul. So the 'eyes going cold' can symbolise the feeling of numbness at war. loss, horror, fear, tiredness.

Or it could symbolise a cold heart? How the man has become a sort of killing machine because he's been at war for so long.

It all depends on the context of the poem - what the poem is trying to say. If that doesn't help then post the poem/paragraph if you can and we could probably help a bit more?

Again, thank you for the insightful comments, appreciate it.

If its in a literal sense, eyes have turned white from death would it be too tenuous to suggest that war has made them blind? I don't know if you've heard of these texts but there is a line in the poem 'Dulce Decorum Est' Where the writer describes

" the white eyes writhing in his face"

Also in my other text, the Kite Runner, when a character who has been affected by war

" his upturned eyes showed nothing but white"

(Original post by Fusionary)
The soldiers' eyes represent direction, awareness and open-mindness. When they close their eyes however in a bid to pray for victory, just like their vision is temporarily gone, as are their futile efforts highlighted in their now literal "lack of awareness" and narrow-mindedness. You could argue they are relying on the premise of "blind faith". You could link praying/closing eyes with this sort of idea.

To you as well, thanks for the feedback. I'm dealing with a specific example here in the novel Spies, where a pilot has deserted his post and as a result is forced to hide underground and is described to have "feverish eyes" , I'm unsure if theres much I could deduce from this? - Perhaps he's been blighted from what he has seen by war?

[sammy-lou]

(Original post by d_aan)
Again, thank you for the insightful comments, appreciate it.

If its in a literal sense, eyes have turned white from death would it be too tenuous to suggest that war has made them blind? I don't know if you've heard of these texts but there is a line in the poem 'Dulce Decorum Est' Where the writer describes



Also in my other text, the Kite Runner, when a character who has been affected by war

I have read both of the texts although I've never actually studied them.

In Dulce et Decorum Est, the description of the white eyes is describing the moment of death/dying, rather than someone already dead. If you analyse it with the dynamic verb "writhing" it gives you a really clear image of the unbearable pain that this man is suffering. The colour white is probably best associated with extreme fear and terror in this context. I imagine this scene as the man at the most painful moment of dying, when he is crippled with pain and his eyes are darting around desperately and rolling backwards. "Writhing" really adds to this.

As for the Kite Runner - I googled the quote you gave to give me a better idea of context. It occurs when his father is very ill when they are living in America. You can, again, link this to the moment of dying. Although - from what I remember - this isn't the moment that his father actually dies, he does have a terminal illness, so this whole period can be seen as the lead up to his death.

I wouldn't say this necessarily needs analysing in a literary sense. The whites showing in his eyes is referring to his eyes rolling back in his head. (he's having a fit).

I think what is most striking about this passage is how weak Baba has become. If you compare him to the father that we saw in Afghanistan earlier in the novel, he is a completely different man. How would you link that to the theme of war? It's difficult to say. Maybe consider the fact that they have both been removed from war, and although it is something geographically distant to them now, it is still very much a part of them. Maybe the 'war' between man and disease (a war which Baba eventually loses). You can think outside the box with this one. It's a really touching passage.

I've sort of gone off on a tangent here. I hope I helped a bit with your original question anyway!

[d_aan]

(Original post by sammy-lou)
I have read both of the texts although I've never actually studied them.

In Dulce et Decorum Est, the description of the white eyes is describing the moment of death/dying, rather than someone already dead. If you analyse it with the dynamic verb "writhing" it gives you a really clear image of the unbearable pain that this man is suffering. The colour white is probably best associated with extreme fear and terror in this context. I imagine this scene as the man at the most painful moment of dying, when he is crippled with pain and his eyes are darting around desperately and rolling backwards. "Writhing" really adds to this.

As for the Kite Runner - I googled the quote you gave to give me a better idea of context. It occurs when his father is very ill when they are living in America. You can, again, link this to the moment of dying. Although - from what I remember - this isn't the moment that his father actually dies, he does have a terminal illness, so this whole period can be seen as the lead up to his death.

I wouldn't say this necessarily needs analysing in a literary sense. The whites showing in his eyes is referring to his eyes rolling back in his head. (he's having a fit).

I think what is most striking about this passage is how weak Baba has become. If you compare him to the father that we saw in Afghanistan earlier in the novel, he is a completely different man. How would you link that to the theme of war? It's difficult to say. Maybe consider the fact that they have both been removed from war, and although it is something geographically distant to them now, it is still very much a part of them. Maybe the 'war' between man and disease (a war which Baba eventually loses). You can think outside the box with this one. It's a really touching passage.

I've sort of gone off on a tangent here. I hope I helped a bit with your original question anyway!

Hi, thanks for the feedback and yes those points about Baba have really helped, thank you