"Children in the Darkness" by Henry M Bechtold
Difficulty Rating: *
There are children in the darkness
Who have not seen the light
There are children in the darkness
Who someone will teach to fight
Chalk and blackboards will not be
To this door there is no key
From this life they can not flee
And these children are not free
Could we simply light a candle
Could we give them half a chance
Could we teach them how to read
Could we teach them how to dance
Or will a war consume them
Their body and their soul
Will their life and blood be poured
Down some endless thirsty hole
Back into the darkness
From which there is no flight
Back into the darkness
Into which there shines no light
The first stanza suggests that the children had not seen light, suggesting that the children were still ignorant on what was going on, not mentioning the war. This contradicts the fact that soldier normally fight for their country due to the loyalty for their country. The last sentence of the first stanza stated that "someone will teach them how to fight" suggests that they had no self-defence in the first place, and had to learn to both adapt and defend the country from the start.
The second stanza "chalk and blackboards will not be" contrasting the reader's view of school with the way these children are taught, showing that these children are unble to receive an adequate education. The next 3 sentences describes that the children are extremely helpless with their situation, and are unable to escape and regain freedom.
The third stanza are questions, asking whether the children would be able to receive the same education as any other children.
Finally, the last stanze answered those questions. Similiar to the second stanza, it showed that the children will still be unable to recive these education and had been stranded in such situation.
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