Literary Devices 1

Tragedy- An example of tragedy in A Long Way Gone is when Ishmael comes so close to being reunited with his family only to see the village get raided by rebels, and everybody in the village is killed.

Imagery- An example of Imagery is from Chapter 8 when Ishmael is in the forest, " On the third day i found myself in the middle of a thick forest, standing beneath huge trees whose leaves and branches made it difficult to see the sky" - (pg. 49).

Foreshadowing-  An of foreshadowing is at the end of chapter 6 just before Ishmael gets separated from his brother Junior, "It was during that attack in the village of Kamator that my friends and I separated. It was the last time I saw Junior, my older brother" (pg. 43). This foreshadows the death of his brother Junior because he says its the last time he ever sees him.

Plot- In  A Long Way Gone Ishmael. Beah finds himself running from civil war in his country. He leaves his home village fighting for his survival with his friends and brother. Ishmael eventually gets separated from his friends and brother and he wanders by himself looking for safety and the rest of his family. He joins up with other boys looking for safety and he ends up joining the army figthing for his survival. while he is in the army Ishmael becomes a ruthless killer hunting fo rthe heads of every rebel he sees.

Flashback- Throughout the story Ishmael has many flashbacks. One example of a flashback is in Chapter 8 while he is wandering around the forest, "I thought about when Junior and I had visited Kabati and would take walks with our grandfather on paths around the coffee farms by the village. He would point out medical leaves and trees whose barks were important medicines. During each visit, Grandfather always gave us a special medicine that was supposed to enhance the brain's capacity to absorb and retain knowledge" (pg. 51).

Rhythm & Rhyme- Rhythm and rhyme show up thoughout the book when Ishmael recalls lyrics to some of his favorite Hip Hop songs such as OPP by Naughty by Nature, " You down with OPP (Yeah you know me) You Down with OPP (Yeah you know me) You down with OPP (Yeah you know me) Who's Down with OPP (Every last homie)" (pg. 38)

Fable- An example of a fable in A Long Way gone is the Bra Spider story that Musa tells his friends on pg. 75.

Nemesis- An example of  nemesis in A Long Way Gone would be the fight between the rebels and army beccause the rebels are the bad guys and the army are the good guys; the rebels are killed and the army soldiers such as Ishmael and his friends celebrate.