Summary Of Next To Of Course God America I

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In the enchanting poem “next to of course god america i,” E.E. Cummings strings together a masterpiece of patriotic songs that appears to praise the eminent country of America but instead simply shields the underlying network of masterful irony and almost ridicule of US’s people. It is believed that E.E. Cummings wasn’t trying to bombast his country’s winsomeness, but trying to satire the truth of it’s blind patriotism.

He lampoons the patriotic fools of America, particularly soldiers, making them sound rash and illogical, being people who just desire to fight for something to scream and yell for something, justifying their actions by saying it was “for America”, claiming “liberty is an endless war”. Saying “why talk of beauty what could be more beaut/iful than these heroic happy dead who rushed like lions to the roaring slaughter” (Cummings, 9-11), illustrates America’s love for a fight, a war, no matter how paramount or trivial, no matter how nonsensical and futile the cause. E.E. Cummings questions America if there is anything more beautiful than people dying mindlessly for America: even …show more content…

First, it addresses the soldiers of America. The people fighting probably didn’t have a say in where they are fighting, or why. They just were told to fight because it was “for their country”- yet still does so willingly. Therefore the soldiers “didn’t stop to think they died” and allowed their voice of liberty in why they are fighting, be mute, in the sense that they died as well as didn’t get a say in where and why they were fighting. Second it questions the general public. If they didn’t start riots and petition for something or fight for something, would thier voice of liberty be mute? Was war and violence always the exclusive and unparalleled way to success and more importantly,

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