“War”
In “War,” Luigi Pirandello uses bleak diction and several tragic details to create a solemn tone. Most people would have sympathy for the characters introduced in this story, but the entire time Luigi makes it out to be a continuous competition. There are a few occasions when the attitude towards the characters changes completely but it is mostly depressing. This story is put into a way where the reader can connect deeply with the characters involved which is why one will immediately get hooked.
In “War,” there is no question that diction is being used as a technique to intensify the sadness and sorrow into the story. Towards the end of the story, when the old man was very stoically speaking about his son’s death to the others, he was asked if his son was really dead. As soon as that question was asked his mood went from inspired, to heart broken. “…heart-rending, uncontrollable sobs” (Pirandello 866). Luigi could have instead said that the old man started to cry. By saying the words heart-rending, and sobs, we immediately come to think of depression. This word choice directly strengthens the solemn tone. “He was panting… his weakened body…” (Pirandello 865). By saying the fat, red-faced man was panting, and had a weak body; it is instantaneously evident that he is vulnerable. Instead, words like heavy breathing could be used but “panting” emphasizes the sadness in the story, therefore, also creating a solemn tone.
Throughout “War,” Luigi magnifies the tone by using several tragic details. In the very beginning, a woman under a big coat is twisting and wriggling in sadness. All of a sudden, one of the passengers says, “You should thank God that your son is only leaving now for the front… my son has already come back twice wounded and been sent back again to the front” (Pirandello 864). When she tells the woman that she should be thanking God in her situation, what first comes to mind is that hers is twice as bad. When the other passenger says this, it guides us into feeling sorry for her. It also gives us a rush of depression, which only adds to the sadness. “…tried to find in the words of her husband and her friends something to console her in her deep sorrow…” (Pirandello 866). When this scene takes place, what the characters are feeling is very straightforward. We now know that this is a mood the characters will not be breaking free of.
In the time of the story, nothing changes. It is simply a continuous dwell on what the characters are going through. The competition that takes place on who should be sadder, only adds to the heart-breaking atmosphere. Bleak diction on the characters attitudes and feelings, along with all of the harrowing details is consecutive repetition of sadness and is a sheer sign of the solemn tone portrayed in the story.