Ground Zero Suzanne Berne Summary

Analysis of Ground Zero In Ground Zero, Suzanne Berne is able to effectively convey her impression of reverence and remorse for the victims and first-responders of the attack on the World Trade Center through her continual use of vivid imagery, symbolism, and figurative language. Berne imparts to her audience that she is one of many viewing the site of ground zero to demonstrate that a copious amount of people, not only herself, came together to witness the devastation and pay their respects. She develops this persona through her continual reference to others’ reactions and emotions in her essay. For example, Berne states, “Everyone in the dining room stopped eating. Several people stood up, whether out of respect or to see better, I don’t know.” In her essay, Berne is attempting to appeal to those who have not yet seen the destruction of ground zero and the families impacted by the attack. …show more content…
At the beginning of the essay, Berne makes her audience to feel the gloomy weather by stating things such as “cold, damp” and “raw wind and spits of rain”. Berne also allows her readers to see the multitude of people from different cultures and countries coming together to view the disaster by describing the many families from around the country and the world. Berne makes her audience visualize the emptiness of the space that was once the World Trade Center when she states, “...“nothing” becomes something much more potent, which is absence.” When Berne compares ground zero to a construction site, she is able to make her audience hear the beats of the hammers and the loud cacophony of the