The passage from Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo shows a complicated but loving relationship between a father and his son. In the passage, the tradition of Joe and his father fishing together is broken. The father, however, reacts calmly. For eight years, they had gone camping together, preferring each other’s company over anyone else’s. And that year, Bill Harper and Joe were going fishing together. This coming of age tale shows a young man separating from his father and becoming independent, and an abandoned father showing acceptance instead of anger. Through syntax, point of view, and selection of detail, and symbolism, Trumbo creates a complicated and vivid relationship between a father and son.
The use of diction and syntax in the …show more content…
The reader only sees into Joe’s perceptions of reality, they never see into the father’s. His perceptions and actions show the reader that he has begun to think for himself, and prioritize spending time with friends as he grows older. The limited point of view draws attention to Joe’s new independence. His point of view also shows that “there was nothing his father treasured more” than the fishing rod he allows Joe to use. However, it appears that that is not true, as his father seems to value him more than anything. When limited to one person’s thoughts and feelings, it is often an unreliable narration. Joe’s thoughts and feelings are authentic and genuine, however, and that contributes to the overall effect of the …show more content…
The first is the amount of time Joe and his father have been coming to the campgrounds; they’d been going since he was seven. That’s eight years that they’ve been going, and each time they fish together. The desertion and growing up show an end to that tradition, and an end to the extremely casual relationship he and his father had. It is shown in the passage that Joe and his father have a close relationship, they don’t have to say much and they don’t have to make a big deal out of small things. The son diminishes gaining independence to a small thing, but it turns out to be route to take. He “said it very casually”, and his father reacted the same way. There is a sense of closeness between them, especially as they share a tent with a floor of pine needles. They have grown so close due to shared experiences, of fishing, and camping, and this retreat to the mountains. However, there is an end to everything, and as Joe observed earlier, it had to happen sometime. This is an end to their near inseparable