From pages 258-264, how does Faulks convey, through narrative technique, the characters and their experiences?

(This question is basically asking: HOW DOES FAULKS TELL THE STORY?)

From pages 258-264, Elizabeth travels to France to visit the battlefields of the First World War. What follows is not only a physical journey, but also a symbolic and metaphorical one her rite of passage from ignorance and self-delusion to an understanding of the horrors of war.

Throughout this section of the book, Faulks uses a change in time and setting to emphasise the changes in Elizabeths emotions. On page 258, his use of factual language to provide an account of a mundane process in the modern world places the tone of the passage firmly within the Elizabeths comfort zone: In the shop she bought a map of north-east France and another of the motorways of Europe. However, Faulks use of rhetorical questions highlights Elizabeths insecurities about what she will find in France: What did a battlefield look like?...wouldnt buildings and trees get in the way? Faulks draws on this insecurity by juxtaposing the imminent death of the moon-faced boy in Elizabeths book with the fripperies of peacetime which she is experiencing. However, Elizabeths fumbled and confused arrival on French soil is symbolic of her transition to understanding.

Elizabeths arrival in Arras draws a strong parallel with Stephens arrival in Amiens at the very beginning of the book, as well as his time spent in Colincamps during the war. This

interweaving of plot strands in time and space drives the plot of the novel forward towards a resolution. Again, the narrative used here is factual in tone and the short sentence structure creates mounting tension: She stepped insidea stooped waiter eyed them from the entrance to the kitchens. The smell of damp carboard and pre-war aftershave in her room are symbolic of the history of Arras, which is so bound to it in the present that its smell physically lingers on in the air.

Throughout Elizabeths stay in Arras, the present is continuously juxtaposed with echoes from the past: Names of regiments, battalions and officers. The waiter bought herring with potato salad. The small determination awakened in Elizabeth to understand this thing again drives forward the plot towards a conclusion. The description of Stephen as her own flesh and blood is particularly resonant, as it echoes the physicality of the war and the suffering undergone.

The following day, the strong coffee and icy mineral water which give Elizabeth a strange sense of well-being prepare her for her revelation about the war. It is symbolic of her confusion about the meaning of the war that she does not recognise the memorial, taking it for a beet refinery. At the climax of this section of the book, when Elizabeth finally progresses to understanding and awareness, it is the names of soldiers which give her this epiphany. Here, Faulks uses present participles and an asyndetic structure to evoke the sheer number of names: There were names teeming, reeling, over surfaces of yards, of hundreds of yards, over furlongs of stone.

The author also uses language to convey Elizabeths feelings of helplessness and her being emotionally overwhelmed. The use of ellipsis and repetition Who are these, these? indicate a profound confusion which Elizabeth cannot openly express. The use of direct speech here also brings an immediacy to the events which contrasts with the lack of speech in the previous part of this section. The fact that the caretaker sounded surprised also indicates an ignorance on Elizabeths part.

In conclusion, Faulks uses the form, structure and language of the piece to convey Elizabeths experiences to the reader. By the means of a physical journey from one country to another, he also evokes a metaphorical journey from ignorance to understanding, whilst drawing on the continually moving aspect of time within the novel to heighten the proximity of the events of the war.