A short story in which there is a conflict between two characters is Michael Morpurgo's "What Does It Feel Like?". The story tells us about a village in Bosnia, which has been invaded by Serbian soldiers during the Bosnian War. We are introduced to a girl called Sofia, who lives in this village. We see the events unfold through her eyes, as the soldiers destroy the village in a coordinated yet ruthless attack. This makes the story all the more harrowing and disturbing, as we see how a young girl has to watch this happen, and it also emphasizes how the soldiers wouldn't spare anyone from the horror.
When the story starts, we are introduced to the idea of a peaceful and calm village, out in the countryside. The author describes the village …show more content…
By telling us that "the mist covered the valley floor" the author is explaining that it is the first thing in the morning, meaning that it is very quiet and harmonious at this moment, which appeals to us as we can imagine how secluded and tranquil this village is. Michael Morpurgo continues, stating that "the wild roses smelt of apples" which again appeals to the readers senses, as the can imagine how this meadow looks, and what it smells and sounds like, continuing to create an image of beauty. We are then introduced to character of Sofia by the author, who tells us that she "was still half-asleep" and she "pulled a fat rosehip from the hedgegrow and idly split it open with her thumbnail". This adds to the idea that it is early in the morning as she is still tired, but also expands on the image of a beautiful meadow packed full of growth and life. When Sofia splits open the flower, it shows idle destruction, that she does not realise. This becomes an important factor in the story later, as she is not prepared for real wreckage and loss. The story continues, telling us that "a perfect …show more content…
Sofia tells us that she doesn't know much about what's going on, as the war was "somewhere down south a long way away", which puts distance between Sofia and the fighting. This means that in her daily life, she does not worry about what's happening, as it does not directly affect her. She continues, telling us that she had "seen pictures of it on the television", which further develops the idea of distance between Sofia's village and the war, as they have really only seen the fighting on the television. They therefore don't really know what is going on in the war, or how it will affect them. Sofia goes into further detail about the images she has seen on the television, saying that she saw "the little girl without any legs, lying on a hospital bed" and that "She'd never forgotten that.She never wanted to be without her legs, never." This tells us of how horrific this war actually is, as it describes the extreme injuries of a very young girl. It also shows further, how childlike Sofia is. The author uses repetition, saying that Sofia chants the word "never", which is something that young children do to try to get their point across, as it reiterates their ideas. It also shows that she really only thinks about how things will directly affect her. When she sees this poor girl who has been severely wounded, she only thinks about how that would affect her if she was in that situation.
When the story starts, we are introduced to the idea of a peaceful and calm village, out in the countryside. The author describes the village …show more content…
By telling us that "the mist covered the valley floor" the author is explaining that it is the first thing in the morning, meaning that it is very quiet and harmonious at this moment, which appeals to us as we can imagine how secluded and tranquil this village is. Michael Morpurgo continues, stating that "the wild roses smelt of apples" which again appeals to the readers senses, as the can imagine how this meadow looks, and what it smells and sounds like, continuing to create an image of beauty. We are then introduced to character of Sofia by the author, who tells us that she "was still half-asleep" and she "pulled a fat rosehip from the hedgegrow and idly split it open with her thumbnail". This adds to the idea that it is early in the morning as she is still tired, but also expands on the image of a beautiful meadow packed full of growth and life. When Sofia splits open the flower, it shows idle destruction, that she does not realise. This becomes an important factor in the story later, as she is not prepared for real wreckage and loss. The story continues, telling us that "a perfect …show more content…
Sofia tells us that she doesn't know much about what's going on, as the war was "somewhere down south a long way away", which puts distance between Sofia and the fighting. This means that in her daily life, she does not worry about what's happening, as it does not directly affect her. She continues, telling us that she had "seen pictures of it on the television", which further develops the idea of distance between Sofia's village and the war, as they have really only seen the fighting on the television. They therefore don't really know what is going on in the war, or how it will affect them. Sofia goes into further detail about the images she has seen on the television, saying that she saw "the little girl without any legs, lying on a hospital bed" and that "She'd never forgotten that.She never wanted to be without her legs, never." This tells us of how horrific this war actually is, as it describes the extreme injuries of a very young girl. It also shows further, how childlike Sofia is. The author uses repetition, saying that Sofia chants the word "never", which is something that young children do to try to get their point across, as it reiterates their ideas. It also shows that she really only thinks about how things will directly affect her. When she sees this poor girl who has been severely wounded, she only thinks about how that would affect her if she was in that situation.