Faithful Elephants: A True Story of Animals, People and War

"Faithful Elephants" tells the story of three elephants during a war in Japan. Yokio Tsuchiya uses metaphors and symbolism to represent the pain and tragic loss of war. When a war threatens to harm the animals at the Ueno zoo, the army issues an order to put the animals to death.

To begin with, a quote that uses symbolism is, "John loved potatoes, so the elephant keepers mixed poisoned potatoes with the good ones when it was time to feed him." The zookeepers used something that he loved to kill him. In this situation the potatoes represent the zookeepers; Although they love the elephants very much they had to kill them to help end the war. Another example of symbolism in this article is "They just lay on their sides, hardly able to see the white clouds floating in the sky over the zoo. However, their eyes appeared clearer and more beautiful than ever." I believe that the elephants weren't just looking up at the sky. They were looking up to something greater or a higher purpose.

Furthermore, metaphors are used very frequently in the story to get certain themes across. "But everyone was hoping and praying that if the elephants could survive only one more day, the war might be over and the elephants saved", is an example of a metaphor portrayed in the text. This false sense of hope held by these zoo keepers shows how with the elephants alive, the war will never really be over. If they don't kill the elephants, than they are avoiding the reality of the war that is going on around them. There death will make them face their situation. Two examples of connected metaphors used throughout the text are, “Bombs were being dropped on Tokyo like falling rain”, in the beginning of the passage and, “... the cherry blossoms fell on the grave like falling snowflakes” at the end of the passage. This metaphor plays a major role in the story. It shows how before the elephants had passed, although bombs were dropping, they were dropping like rain. After the elephants had passed, the cherry blossoms fell upon the grave of these dead elephants like snowflakes. Although it is a more peaceful environment, something had grown colder about the zoo. The absence of the elephants at the zoo made it less warm; A serene tragedy. This coldness and absence is portrayed through the rain turning into snow.

Using symbolism and metaphors helped the author represent the tragedy and loss of war. This story also shows how war does not just affect human beings. It affects nature, the environment, and even the animals who live through it. Loss finds us all whether its in a small or big way, meaningful or meaningless. The only way to live through the loss, to truly survive, is to accept your reality. Acceptance is our Banzai trick; It helps us prevail through times of true desperation.

-Katie