The events that occurred on September 11th 2001 caused American ideologies of the Middle East to shift. However whether these newly formed ideologies of aggression towards the Middle East were necessary is up to interpretation. George Saunders addresses this cultural moment in his satirical short story The Red Bow. He does this by creating a fictional utopia that faces a paradigm shift when a rabid dog kills a child and the people of the community react by harboring hostility towards all animals in an effort to prevent the tragedy from reoccurring. The Red Bow is a political allegory that is meant to lead its audience to reflect upon the tendency in American society to convert fear into generalized aggression. The narrator is first introduced
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In the rubble, firefighters searched for a symbol to hold onto and a way to pay tribute to the lives lost. This directly relates to the father finding Emily’s red bow where is daughter was killed. Saunders uses the imagery of the father reacting emotionally to the red bow as a way to not only highlight the pain but show that the red bow is now a symbol of the devastation that occur on the day Emily died. These symbols of devastation i.e. the wreckage and the bow will later contribute to the reluctance to move on with in the communities. However, holding onto an object’s of the past shows to only provide more issues when they begin to be sensualized and used as political propaganda. As political figures visited ground zero in New York and famously proclaimed that America will “never forget”, so did Emily’s Uncle Matt as he grasped the emotions the red bow triggered and with statements of never forgetting drastic actions to prove the remembrance would …show more content…
What was once a few rabid dogs is now unspecified, as any of them could be a potential threat. At the same time, the bow grows bigger, it is posturized with the words “Fight the Outrage” printed over it. (Saunders, 82). However, as the bow gains a more profound significance in the lives of everyone in the village, it also takes on a new role. The red bow is now a flag to wave as the reasoning for any action the community takes to prevent another event like Emily’s death. The behavior of the people in the Village also further shifts, as the anger has died down, the reader notices the fear has not: it is at an equivalent or even worse stage than the day Emily
In the rubble, firefighters searched for a symbol to hold onto and a way to pay tribute to the lives lost. This directly relates to the father finding Emily’s red bow where is daughter was killed. Saunders uses the imagery of the father reacting emotionally to the red bow as a way to not only highlight the pain but show that the red bow is now a symbol of the devastation that occur on the day Emily died. These symbols of devastation i.e. the wreckage and the bow will later contribute to the reluctance to move on with in the communities. However, holding onto an object’s of the past shows to only provide more issues when they begin to be sensualized and used as political propaganda. As political figures visited ground zero in New York and famously proclaimed that America will “never forget”, so did Emily’s Uncle Matt as he grasped the emotions the red bow triggered and with statements of never forgetting drastic actions to prove the remembrance would …show more content…
What was once a few rabid dogs is now unspecified, as any of them could be a potential threat. At the same time, the bow grows bigger, it is posturized with the words “Fight the Outrage” printed over it. (Saunders, 82). However, as the bow gains a more profound significance in the lives of everyone in the village, it also takes on a new role. The red bow is now a flag to wave as the reasoning for any action the community takes to prevent another event like Emily’s death. The behavior of the people in the Village also further shifts, as the anger has died down, the reader notices the fear has not: it is at an equivalent or even worse stage than the day Emily