Literary Techniques In Fly Away Peter

‘life wasn’t for anything, it simply was’
Written by Australian writer, David Malouf, in 1982, ‘Fly Away Peter’ is an exceptional novel exploring the brutality of the First World War and the madness of mankind, in contrast to the continuous and unstoppable cycle of nature. The main plot follows main character, Jim Saddler, through his journey of self-discovery as he makes the life-threatening decision to join the horrors of war at the Armentieres trenches. To convey his central notions, Malouf effortlessly demonstrates the use of various literary techniques, in particular the use of symbolism, repetition, foreshadowing and juxtaposition.
Malouf’s overarching idea of the continuous and cyclic nature of life is remarkably evident throughout

the text. Just as the Earth never stops turning on its axis, the cycle of nature never stops and is always in motion, despite the pressures that mankind may place on the world. This idea is constantly emphasised through the patterns in Malouf’s language, and the repetition of the concepts of motion and turning. For instance, ‘the whole great circle’ and ‘the wall was in motion, even in it’s stillness’ are two examples of how Malouf uses repetition to develop a sense of nature’s significance in the reader. Malouf also reinforces this idea through Jim’s thoughts, as he is a character that is extremely connected to the natural world.

Before Jim decides to leave to war, both he and Imogen were enthralled by the migration of birds, which Imogen

names ‘the first refugees’, foreshadowing the thousands of war refugees to come. The migration of the birds can also represent another symbol for the cycle of nature, as the sandpipers were creatures ‘that only weeks ago had been on the other side of the Earth’. This notion of the two sides of the world is highlighted as Malouf contrasts the first half of the book, at the sanctuary, to the horrific setting of war in the second half. Despite the separation, Jim finds continuity between these two sides, and was reassured at war by ‘the presence of the birds that allowed [him] to make a map in his head of how the parts in his life were connected’. For the reader, these various techniques weave together the unlike aspects of Malouf’s story into a comprehensible whole, and adds intellectual depth to the novel.

The theme of nature’s cycle of regeneration was not only emphasised by Malouf in the physical sense, but also in a spiritual sense.

To demonstrate the physical supremacy of nature over man, Malouf discusses nature’s reclamation of the land prior to battle; ‘the blasted trees had renewed themselves with summer growth’. TALK ABOUT IMAGERY AND READER. Jim’s death is yet another example of the unbroken cycle of life, as Malouf transitions his character from reality to the afterlife without any pause or clear ending. This once again emphasised the idea that even when a life stops, the process of life continues and stays in motion. Even Malouf’s description of Jim’s bandage that could ‘stretch halfway around the world, to the coast, to home’ was symbolic of his mind and spirit metaphorically returning home after death; returning to what he came from. This process is both comforting and daunting for the reader, as they are reassured that their own lives will return to eternity after death, however they are also reminded of the insignificance their role has in comparison to the grand purpose of the

world.

The cycle of nature is juxtaposed against Malouf’s other main theme of the disturbance and impact that mankind has in the world. This notion is introduced in an epigraph at the beginning of the book, a quote by writer G.K. Chesterton. The quote encapsulates the corruption of the human race, that ‘man is an animal that has gone entirely off it’s head’, and is used to foreshadow the central notion that humans become base and mindless when they are not true to the good side of their nature. By choosing to incorporate texts from other authors outside the main body of his text, the reader is forced to contemplate this concept before it is brought to their attention in the plot. The use of this epigraph also adds weight to Malouf’s argument, because his opinion is being credited by another author. Another way that Malouf displays the notion of man’s madness is through the symbolism of the bi-plane, a ‘monstrous’ man-made machine which interrupts the harmony of nature; ‘the big shadow was that of a bi-plane,’. Later in the plot, Malouf juxtaposes this same bi-plane with cowpats, ‘the flying machine sat among cow-pats casting a squat shadow’, to lightly undermine the sophistication that the human race thought they had achieved. The repetition of the word ‘shadow’ to describe this machine was also a symbolism technique using the dark cast of shadows as the embodiment of the dark side of human nature. When describing the horrors of war, Malouf would also intentionally incorporate all senses into his passages to create vivid and over-whelming imagery for the reader, bringing them into the world that he had created; ‘that was how the war first touched Jim’, ‘but they looked beaten all the same’, ‘the smell got worse’. In doing so, the reader obtains an evocative picture of the shocking reality of war; the war that humanity had deemed to be necessary.

At one stage in history, war was glorified and for the victor, held up as an expression of supreme national pride. Mankind was proud of what they had created, and would go to great efforts to promote their momentous war. The landscape, in particular, was consciously developed by the human race to create ‘emergency roads everywhere, cutting across what must have been vineyards or beet-fields, metalled for motor vehicles and guns’. Nature was being destroyed without a second passing thought, to make place for the weaponry and violence of the human race. Malouf also highlights the idea that the men in Jim’s society recognise this madness in other men, but are still drawn into the madness themselves - for instance the photo shop owner calling the war a ‘catastrophe. Madness!’. Even Jim Saddler, a man with a passive attitude towards the violence, felt the pull of war and the air of people around him. After Malouf changes Jim’s (and the readers) perspective into a spectacular birds eye view of paradise in Bert’s bi-plane, Jim soon realises that he is ‘sliding down with the rest, down into the pit’ of madness.

In conclusion, Malouf clearly displayed the insignificance of man in nature’s schemes, as nature is a continuous force despite the madness of mankind. Even when loved ones are lost, life continues regardless of how extensive and insignificant it may be. The universal union of events, and the pattern and inevitability to events accumulates the notion that ‘life wasn’t for anything, it simply was.’