Comment on theme

The narrative uses a story based on recent real-world events as a means of exploring how dynamics of peace and war can manifest in modern contexts. The story is specifically set in Syria and examines the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War. The story begins with a focus on peacetime in order to establish a thematic reverence for peace as an ideal to be desired. The narrator discusses his childhood with a sense of contentment and fulfillment, as peace and stability allowed him to enjoy that time in his life. He recalls living in a beautiful countryside and living securely with his parents and siblings. He recalls sleeping outdoors with his brothers on occasion as a means of recreation: “We woke in the mornings to the stirring of olive trees in the breeze…the air cool and the sun a pale rim of persimmon to the east” (5). This lyrical sense of reverence emphasizes the narrative’s premium on the idea of peace.