Task 2

Rainbow Death America did not foresee Green, pink, purple and other colors death potpourri! Expecting others to pay a high price. Now thinking twice? Toll on the innocent and unborn. Omnipotent and disregarding who will mourn. Reflective about all the illness, birth defects and prematurely dead. All the deceit continues to spread. Nefariously America led astray - Generations untold WILL pay - Execrable effects of agent orange spray! Hubert Wilson

Point of view: Hubert, was one of the men fighting in Vietnam during the war, the area he was in was also one of the areas with high use of Agent Orange which causes health problems to those who are exposed to it. Hubert who was a Vietnam war veteran, witnessed the death, suffering caused by the Agent Orange, he realised that America was so desperate into winning the war, they did not think twice and they just went on with the plan of using Agent Orange, as the writer wrote, 'Now thinking twice'. Situation and Setting: America could not win the Viet Cong fighting against them, due to their guerrilla warfare. As the America had no more ways that they can think of to best counter the Viet Cong, they decided to use the Agent Orange although it doesn't seem to be the best way. When the Agent Orange was use, the problem came. Everybody who came into contact with it was affected by it. The American's plan backfired, as it not only brought pain and agony to the Viet Cong, it also brought pain to the soldiers who came into contact with it and also innocent civilians, as can be seen when the writer said, 'Toll on the innocent and unborn'. It also affected generations and generations after, as can be seen, 'Generations untold WILL pay'. Language/Diction: potpourri- a mixture of dried petals of roses. In this poem, it is referring to the different combination of colours of the Agents. omnipotent-almighty or infinite in power, as God deceit-the act or practice of deceiving nefariously-extremely wicked or villainous execrable-utterly detestable Personal Response: After reading this poem, I feel that wars are meant to kill and bring suffering to people involved in it. There is nothing called a end of war, there will only be pauses but wars will never truly stop, one war may have ended but there will always be another, and that even when one war has stopped, ended, people involved in it will still suffer, no matter it is the soldier or the civilians. Generations of the civilians will suffer, as the Agent Orange case, generations after the war, the civilians are still suffering, through the effects on people who came into contact with Agent Orange, as the writer said, 'birth defects and prematurely dead'. The writer is witnessed the horrors of war, the after effects of it and he hopes to tell us by writing this poem, to tell us that war is cruel, and people involved in it will also turn evil, no matter how he was before the war, as they only want to win, not thinking about the consequences.