English lang - Passage to africa

Emotive language

- "enervating", "hungry, lean, scared and betrayed faces"

- evokes shock, pathos and sympathy in readers

- highlights the realities of reporting from a conflict zone

Sensory imagery

- "You could see it in her sick, yellow eyes and smell it in the putrid air"

- engages the reader's senses and makes the suffering feel real and unavoidable

- shocks and disgusts readers

- emphasises the horrors of famine and war

Semanic field for death

- "ghoulish" "hunt"

- implies journalists feed off of suffering

- highlights the predatory nature of journalists

- portrays the people as vulnerable

- Criticises journalism as exploitative

- reinforces the theme of death

Simile

- The search for the shocking is like the craving for a drug"

- suggests journalists and audiences are addicted to shocking images

- highlights the desensitisation and lack of sympathy

- critiques both the media and viewers

- drug has negative and harmful connotations, making readers view desensitisation as harmful

- creates moral discomfort

Rhetorical question

- "how should I feel to be standing there so strong and confident?"

- acts as a turning point from reporting to self-questioning

- first-person reflection

- emotional and reflective tone

- makes the message more personal

- encourages readers to reflect on this question

Direct address

- "so, my nameless friend, if you're still alive, I owe you one"

- oxymoron in "nameless friend"

- Colloquial language humanises him

- contrast with a thousand faces

- leaves a lasting emotional impact

Anecdotes/first person

- used to show his thoughts and feelings

- makes it personal and honest

- makes the suffering feel real and personal

- forces the reader to emotionally engage

Listing

- "a thousand hungry, scared, lean and betrayed faces"

- long list overwhelms the reader, mirroring the overwhelming suffering

evokes pathos in the readers

- "a thousand" creates initial emotional distance for the reader

Contrast

- "What might have appalled us... no longer impressed us much"

- contrast between "appauled" and "no longer impressed" shows how exposure has numbed emotional responses

- suggests suffering has become ordinary or common

- shows desensitisation and a lack of sympathy

- dehumanises the people suffering

- reflects how the media portrays victims

- Criticises the media's lack of empathy

- make readers question their own desensitisation

Single line paragraph

- "And then there was the face I will never forget"

- intrigues readers

- emphasises the life-changing importance of the moment

- contrasts - "a thousand hungry, scared, lean and betrayed faces"

Short sentences

- "habiba had died"

- calm, detached, emotionless tone contrasts with the horror and suffering

- shows it is common

- emphasises helplessness

power of three

- "that simple, frictionless, motionless"

- "no rage, no whimpering, just passing away"

- suggests they were too weak to struggle

- shows it is common

- emphasises helplessness

- calm tone

Repetition (smile)

- emphasises his preocupation with the smile

Repetition "a mix of pity and revulsion. Yes revulsion"

- emotive language shows great disturbance

- honesty shocks the reader

- lack of sympathy for those suffering

Purpose of the text

- to expose the reality of war

- to criticise the media

- to make the audience reflect on their own role

- to challenge the stereotypes of the victims

Writers thoughts and feelings

- detached, inured, professional

- discomfort, unease

- shock

- guilt

- inner conflict

- lasting impact