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  • Essay / The differences between the novels "Trail of Tears" and "A Rumor of War"

    The author of Trail of Tears: The Rise and Fall of the Cherokee Nation and the author of A Rumor of War have styles very contrasting due to the different objectives of their books. John Ehle, the author of Trail of Tears, writes primarily to inform the general public about the Cherokee Nation by giving a less entertaining "dry" book. Philip Caputo, the author of A Rumor of War, describes his experiences during the Vietnam War. Due to the different goals, the two authors' writing styles vary greatly. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Ehle, writing about the Cherokee westward movement, speaks in the third person to give a more professional view of the movement. The style generally used gave the information and statistics that any history textbook would give, as well as the essential element of a protagonist to follow this movement. The protagonist was a key character who lived throughout the movement, Major Ridge. The difference between Ehle and Caputo's protagonist is that Caputo focuses on himself, a single element of the entire war, while Ehle uses a deep protagonist who moves the situation forward, while Caputo is the one who is affected by the constantly evolving situation. Caputo faces conflicting orders, adding to his confusion and losing motivation throughout the war. Even on his days off, two men are killed in battle, making the changing situation further catalyzing the decay of his soul and spirit. What Caputo is able to accomplish, due to the narrower scope covered by the novel and the first-person account of an event, is a good control of the sense of time. The long, dreary weeks of waiting are also very long for readers. The adrenaline-pumping moments also come through in what appears to be a very graphic moment. The painful moments giving the impression of stopping in time are also felt by the reader. Ehle, on the other hand, must make large leaps in time, only being able to briefly review the events themselves and not their effects on the individual. What makes Trail of Tears fall short of the glory of A Rumor of War is not its emotional focus, but its use of statistics and its ability to incorporate the first-person moments of Ridge to gently describe the variety of situations among the several decades following the movement. Besides all the differences between the writer's styles, the trait that always gives an element of similar style is due to the overall theme of the important moments in the story. Although A Rumor of War has an overall theme that war does not change, one can still argue that throughout the book, war situations developed throughout the book, both in intensity and situation. . Both books develop the idea of ​​change over time. Caputo at the end faces all the effects of the war, where he is blamed for the deaths of two Vietnamese civilians, while Ehle describes the end of the westward migration and Ridge's death. Yet in both books the ending is left open to the question of the future because the two are only one piece of history. What happens after these events because of these events needs further study, because the story still continues to develop. Even today, we can find the effects of the Vietnam War and the Cherokee movement, which allowed the conquest of a large part of the lands of our country today, but also the fall of a large.