The war had been a huge bomb explosion. All spewed up, rolling and spinning and dispersing high into the air. Now it was over; everyone was returning to land. But everything was falling into different places. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay – Andrea Levy, Small Island (London: Tinder Press, 2006) (page 497) Small Island was written by Andrea Levy and published in 2004, with the plot set in 1948, when England is still of recovery from the effects of the Second World War and reconstruction. Events such as the inauguration of the new health system (NHS) and the arrival of the passenger ship Empire Windrush from Jamaica helped define the beginning of the post-war condition that changed British society. It is possible to link these events and many other transformations that occurred in England to the effects of the war. Considering the consequences of the war and its period of crisis, I will limit my analysis to the narrative structure and actions of Queenie and Bernard during this critical period. The narrative contains a particular structure that reflects the issue of war. Instead of being built chronologically, the plot is split two ways. First, the narrative is divided into the voices of the four characters. Secondly, the plot is divided, after a short prologue, by time. The plot moves back and forth in a flashback style, in which the nine main units of the novel are labeled "1948" or "Before", going all the way back to 1924. In addition to this shift in time and perspective of the four characters, the reader it is also taken to different settings, beyond national borders and cultural moments, involving the 1924 British Empire Exhibition at Wembley; London before and after the outbreak of the Second World War; Jamaica, England and the United States through Jamaican airmen; and Calcutta after the victory over Japan. By exposing the reader to this analeptic narrative, Levy conveys the sense of chaos caused by war in the characters' lives. The lack of specification of the previous time, simply called “Before”, ends up making the past rather intangible and causes the opposite effect in the present of the plot. Emphasizing this period, called “1948”, the narrative focuses on the post-war period and consequences. The time of war ends up becoming the only point of reference for the characters, who are somehow attached to the past or project the future (Hortense and Gilbert) and try to escape from the chaotic present. An example of this connection to the past is Bernard, whose Queenie tries to move house when she moves out saying "[i]t could be a real house again [...][but] most of the things he suggested were greeted with Bernard's trembling head” (217), so he rejects the changes as his house is passed down from generation to generation Bernard's presence in the story is limited to Queenie's description of it in her narrative during the first half of the book, as if the narration was trying to reproduce his taciturnity. Before his narration, all three other characters narrate the plot in a way that constantly moves back and forth in time, in a random sequence Bernard are grouped in a sequence of ten chapters, all included in the "Before" time zone, the last three are distributed like the others at the end of the novel, in the "present" part of the plot, in 1948. This narrative structure can represent the The idea is that Bernard, who is traditional and resists change, is stuck in the past. However, unlike Queenie, war imposes newevents to Bernard without asking his permission. Bernard's stable and even apathetic personality is disturbed by the events of the war. Apart from Queenie, his father Arthur and superficial conversations with the neighbors, Bernard does not appear to have any other relationships. His statement saying that “[he] would not have wanted a war […], he would never have wanted to be in India. But ([he] admit[s]) put a stick in the back and a spring in the step of this middle-aged bank clerk who thought his life was sorted” (289) embodies his structured personality. The opening sentence of the second chapter that introduces its narrative is organized with rhyme and rhythm. The war took Bernard out of England and forced new elements into his life, making him have different experiences, “he even started whistling (nothing special) now [that] he was part of a team” and he was proud of it. (ibid.) Supporting this idea that Bernard's social life is expanded by the events of the war, during his stay in India he becomes very close to Maxi. Friendship and affection seem to be new to Bernard, and their friendship is quite valued by him. So esteemed by him that in his description there seems to be a certain erotic tension between the two in the episode in the dark forest, when they heard a supposed teammate call for help and realized that it was a trap set by the Japanese. Hidden from them, Maxi and Bernard come closer to share the only blanket they had: two alert heads rotating, our bodies wrapped as one, stuck together where the naked flesh pressed. […] Our guns rose quickly, peeking through the gap in the fabric, pointing in different directions. […] His warm breath on my cheek, scented with tobacco. Whiffs of body odor came out of the blanket. Rough fibers that scratch our cheeks. […] Maxi's arm muscles pumped against me (tight again) his knee nervously rubbed mine. (294-5) Their physical closeness is evident in the passage. It follows their plan to become partners in a rabbit farm in the English countryside. Ultimately, Maxi dies in a supposed arson fire at the erks' cabin. At the end of the war in India, Bernard believes he is suffering from syphilis due to his relationships with a prostitute and, ashamed, avoids returning to Queenie. Perhaps as a way of clinging to Maxi's existence, he chose to go to his friend's hometown of Brighton and observe his children and wife, who “soon got used to seeing him sitting in the cemetery [and] nodding at him. " (351)If the lines open up space for considerations about Bernard's sexuality and its flexibility, this is surprising to the reader who has been introduced to a very intransigent and bigoted Englishman. Another episode, a few pages before the one with Maxi, seems to reinforce the idea of ​​the discovery of this aspect of Bernard. Bernard falls into a trench, crowded with men as the Japanese planes flew over them 'balance and slipped back down when [he] noticed an unmistakable bulge on the front of [his] shorts.' also shown the lasting consequences of the war through Arthur, Bernard's father, who returned from World War I with shell shock - a disorder that rendered him mute. Bernard appears to internalize many of his father's characteristics and suffer the consequences of having missed interaction with his “pa” (father), who is so infantilized – he does not speak and is looked after by his own son and wife. When Arthur returned from World War I he was “never [his] dad again. […] First he carried [Bernard]on his shoulders” (331), to teach him how to play, etc. Arthur's shell shock affects Bernard's personality, as he seems to have absorbed this trait of Arthur. Queenie often complains about her husband's parsimony of words, which in the plot can also be read as the representation of British coldness compared to the Jamaican people. Queenie learned in school that there was an apostrophe to indicate that something was missing and “that was how [she] had always seen Bernard's father, Arthur: a human apostrophe,” because “he never spoke. He shook his head, nodded, grunted, sighed, he too all in all. But no words came from his lips” (238). The lack of reaction, Bernard's silence, when Queenie reveals to him that she was pregnant and that he was not the father, illustrates the relationship between Arthur, the silent father, and his son. Despite the intense events, “[t]here were some words once spoken that divided the world in two. Before telling them and after” (412), and Bernard chooses not to change their situation as a couple: He listened to me completely. Without ever saying a word. Never interrupt or want clarification. Never snorted, he shook his head. […] And for the first time I was grateful that Bernard Bligh could be relied upon to have absolutely nothing to say. (ibid.) War also brings situations into Queenie's life where she can develop self-knowledge and put her liveliness into practice. Marrying Bernard allows her to escape the boredom of the countryside and move into his home in London. However, she may have found that she had just transitioned from one type of boredom to another. At the start of the war, "the raid was the most exciting thing that had ever happened in this house, [t]illed with life... [she] couldn't wait for this war to come" (220), which it will turn her life upside down. Furthermore, due to the absence of her unyielding husband, Queenie possesses good components to experience great transformations, first opening the house to the tenants and then finally meeting Michael as one of them. The reader can consider Queenie the one who unites the other three characters who narrate the story. history. She serves as a softener of conflicts between her husband and the other couple formed by Gilbert and Hortense, as well as an important person for their settlement in England. Queenie can be considered Small Island's most enlightened character, as she is one of the few British citizens depicted as accepting of racial differences. He has a curious mind (in the prologue regarding his teacher), manages to leave his family and the countryside (even if due to an emotionless marriage), goes to work in the retirement center helping the victims of the war and also helps some gods by giving them his furniture and a place to stay. After Bernard's departure for India, Queenie had to fend for herself and rented out some rooms in the house. Michael was one of the people who briefly stayed in the place during his stay in London. He is described at the beginning of the plot as Hortense's infatuation since her childhood. He had an affair with Mrs. Ryder, the married American school teacher in Jamaica, and Hortense saw them both kissing, which broke her heart. The savvy Michael arrives in England and soon catches Queenie's attention, having the characteristics that Bernard lacks. Michael is adventurous, he talks, he tells his stories and makes her feel special, or at least desired, leading to their erotic encounter:It wasn't me. Mrs. Queenie Bligh wasn't even there. That woman was a beauty: he couldn't get enough of her. He liked the soft softness of the blonde hair on her legs. Her nipples were the pinkest he had ever seen. Her throat… he just had to kiss her throat. This woman was as sexy as any starlet on the