Rainbow Death --- Task 2

Rainbow Death

America did not foresee

Green, pink, purple and other colors death potpourri!

Expecting others to pay a high price.

Now thinking twice?

Toll on the innocent and unborn.

Omnipotent and disregarding who will mourn.

Reflective about all the illness, birth defects and prematurely dead.

All the deceit continues to spread!

Nefariously America was led astray -

Generations untold WILL pay -

Execrable effects of agent orange spray!

1) Point of View

Point --- Strongly object USA actions in using the Agent Orange /

Evidence --- "America did not foresee"

“Now thinking twice?”

“Nefariously America led astray”

"Death potpourri"

Elaboration --- By saying “Now thinking twice”, Hubert is saying that the USA had not thought through all the consequences of the Agent Orange but when the realised the devastating effects that caused gore and defects, it was too late to reverse the effects anymore. Death potpourri is a oxymoron as potpourri refers to a mixture of dried, naturally fragrant plant material, used to provide a gentle natural scent in houses and death is in itself gory and brutal. The speaker may be trying to say that death spreads as fast as the scent of the potpourri as Agent Orange is able to kill rapidly. Finally, the most vital clue to the poet side is when he calls America nefarious (which means evil)

2)Situation & Settings

Point --- Historic Setting was the Vietnam War

Evidence --- "birth defects"

"premature death"

"execrable effects of agent orange spray"

Elaboration --- From the evidence, it is evident that Agent Orange was used in the context of the poem. The effects of Agent Orange, such as " birth defects" and "premature death", are similar to those effects of Agent Orange in the Vietnam War. Furthermore, future generations will also have to pay for the damage caused by the Agent Orange. To ensure this was the Vietnam War, USA was included in this poem.

3)Language/Diction

Point --- Poem includes many literary devices such as oxymoron and alliteration

Evidence --- "rainbow death"

"thinking twice"

Through the poet’s use of oxymoron like “death potpourri”, it creates a sarcastic tone which shows that he is sceptical of the USA using Agent Orange in the war. He also uses alliteration of the “t” sound in “thinking twice”. The “t” sound is a harsh, sharp sound that is commonly associated with scolding. It demonstrates that the poet may be chiding the USA's actions or perhaps disapproving it after he had experienced the horrors of chemical warfare.

4)I found that this poem managed to convey the situation of the Vietnam War to the reader as it conveys image of death and decay. The reader would also be able to feel the fury in the tone as well as the sense of disappointment and hopelessness. Thus, I feel that this poem has succeeded as it manages to evoke emotion as well as expressing his sentiments to the USA.