Irony In Tony Palmer's Break Of Day

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Break of Day is a powerful novel about a country boy who leaves his home to fight in the disease-

infested jungles of Papua New Guinea, world war two. Tony Palmer portrays many different themes

throughout the novel, including family secrets, bravery, and death. Palmer argues that there are various

types of bravery displayed in the book. He also shows how perspective on death can change according

to your surroundings. The final theme Palmer explores is family, and how a common flaw all families

share is secrecy. These are the concepts discussed in this essay.

A common trait all families possess is the ability to keep secrets. Palmer shows that some secrets can

bring people together, while others tear them apart. An example of a good secret …show more content…

Understandably, Ada was pushed to

the point where she just had to leave behind all the lies and hiding. She left behind her family and Will,

the boy she loved, just to get away from it all. These are only a few of the examples of how Palmer

portrays flawed families crumbling, due to secrets.

Throughout the novel, Palmer displays different types of bravery through different characters. Murray

was brave for defending his morals. He refused to shoot their dog, Paddy, because he believed it was

unnecessary. He believed his father just had “...to tell [Paddy] what’s right.” Murray is a strong believer

in second chances, this is shown when he stops will from shooting Sid. Murray was sensitive, and in the

era the book was set in, his sensitivity was often mistaken as cowardice. However, Will was brave for

shooting Paddy when Murray could not. Throughout the entire novel, Palmer describes Will as the brave

brother. Will was brave in a stereotypical way, filling most peoples image of a hero. He was brave when

courage was “demanded”. A final example of bravery is when the dad died attempting to protect his

beloved horses. During the fire, the dad realised the horses were locked in the barn and would

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