... as vast as the sky or something as heavy as gravity. He uses this to explain how important the soldiers really are. Another literary device used in this excerpt is diction. O"Brian uses the phrase, "they carried" many times because it represents the soldiers" pain. Not only did they carry water bottles and stationary, they carried dysentery and malaria also. It ... explains the pain and suffering they went through, and what they had to do to sustain life. Mood, irony, figurative language, and diction were all used as literary devices in these two writings. These passages demonstrate wha...

• Word Count: 472
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School