Powers uses an array of narrative techniques such as imagery, personification, alliteration, and various sentence structures to emphasize power of the war, from the first sentence of page three to "We stayed awake thanks to amphetamines and fear", on page five. Powers personifies the war throughout the first page and extends it to the next, this is an example of a semantic field. For example, "war rubbed its thousand ribs against the ground in prayer" and "war fasted, nourished by its own privations. This highlights the power of war because and". gives it a body, a form, the “war” is no longer just an event or a situation, it is a being Furthermore, Powers uses anaphora with its constant repetition of “The war” in linked clauses. , creating a powerful and thrilling effect The first line: “The war tried to kill us in the spring” highlights the power of war because the sentence is so short and unadorned; Powers clearly states the fact, making it clear to the reader that there is no doubt that war is brutal and deadly. The sentence “The war had killed thousands by September” is also short and insensitive. Powers expresses no opinions or emotive language, he does not attempt to save the reader from the true horrors of war. Also in the first line, Powers juxtaposes death with “spring,” the season of new life; emphasizing that no good force can hinder war, it is ruthless, unstoppable and very powerful. Then, in the sentence that immediately follows, Powers describes Al Tafar in the summer in a gentle tone with longer sentences strung together, quickly making the war a personal message, i.e. "me and Murph ". This language contrasts with the previous sentence, making the first line even more striking and intensifies the beauty of the season that is in middle of paper......against the power of war. To add to this, Powers describes the platoon as "gray streaks against the pre-dawn light." The soldiers appear as shadows of men compared to the all-powerful war and perhaps Powers foreshadows the death that approaches the soldiers. Still in the phrase "the war sent its citizens rustling into the shadows", Powers uses the possessive pronoun "its" to show that the war controls the citizens, that they belong to it, that it has power over them. “Faces swollen and green, now allergic to life” the war has left the bodies of its victims scattered in its wake, it has neither pity nor pity. War even reverses the essential function of the human body, which is to contain and preserve life, so that the body becomes "allergic to life." Powers very effectively conveys to the reader the horror of the unstoppable power of wars through his use of language, sentence structure, and many literary devices..