Paper 6 revision

Courtney Hamilton
Adam Weinstein
En 101
12/9/07

Live From Iraq

According to the first lines in the song Live From Iraq, “ Every days like a gamble here, This is no joke, This is live from Iraq, Where we prayin we make it home”, the song illustrates the hardships American soldiers face everyday in the war with Iraq. Every line provides detailed proof that the war is not represented accurately on television in the United States. This song illustrates the true blood and gore endured by the soldiers that is censored from the television sets of every American in the United States. Live From Iraq offers the inside scoop of a gruesome war without the government’s distorted view point. In order to understand the full concept of the war with Iraq, the viewpoint of an actual soldier is necessary. Live From Iraq uses pathos to evoke emotions in the reader in order to persuade the audience to disagree with the war.

Throughout the song, the artist, 4th25, constantly refers to Iraq as, “ the home of too many soldiers graves”. This line represents the artist’s opinion of the war and verbalizes the effect of the fighting in Iraq. By incorporating the line, the artist evokes pain in the audience and informs America of the pain the soldiers and their families are experiencing. 4th25 believes the main outcome of the war so far is dead bodies and as a result, low spirits. The lyrics to the song illustrate the imagery from the battlefield well, from gun powder to the ubiquitous bombing. Another fact that bothers the artist is that the soldiers gamble with their lives in Iraq; yet, if they survive, they will never forget all of the horrors they experienced from the war. Every minute spent in Iraq is a chance each soldier makes and the artist depicts the terror of that gamble very clearly throughout the song.

After perusing the lyrics a couple of times, it is clear what the persona of the song is representing. The persona of the song is a soldier actively involved with the war who identifies with the soldiers that are fighting. All of the lines vividly describe the blood and gore of the war and how it affects the speaker. The speaker uses pathos to support his/her message through the lyrics. By involving intense imagery, such as: “the artist evokes emotion in the audience and therefore gets the audience involved in the event. Although the speaker is obvious, it is hard to know whether the artist is the persona or not. The artist could be involved with the event, however the connection between the two are unknown.

In order for the audience to understand the seriousness of the war with Iraq, the speaker includes visual facts about the recent events. The speaker uses imagery to persuade the audience to disagree with the war. Not only does the speaker disagree with the war, but he/she also wants the audience to know exactly what is happening in Iraq. The news does not show any of the gory details; therefore, someone must put the events of the war into perspective. Many Americans are clueless as to what is going on and the speaker wants to give the audience the correct information.

Throughout the song the artist states that the fighting occurring in Iraq is achieving nothing. Through doing so, the song is more effective in introducing the message. The lyrics inform the audience about the war and gives strong evidence that the war is affecting the lives of many soldiers and their families. The artist attempts to evoke sympathy in Americans that do not know about the war by including the line, “ 59 of us April 4th, 8 of us dyin”. It also opens the idea that the war may not be worth the pain and suffering the soldiers and their families are experiencing. The song actually gives a reason for people to pay attention to the country and decide if the war is really the right decisions for the country. The main issue the speaker deals with is the effectiveness of the war. He/she wants to know if there is any progress being made through all of the fighting.

In conclusion, Live From Iraq involves the issue of the wars effectiveness. By fighting the war, soldiers are dying and loved ones are affected by it. According to the speaker, the war is pointless. The speaker believes Americans should know the truth and not the vague interpretation broadcasted on the news. The war is still going on and nothing is being achieved so far. Since the speaker reveals the actual information regarding the war, Americans can decide for themselves if the war in Iraq is right or wrong.