The Role Of Protest In Trent Reedy's Divided We Fall

There are many forms of protest in today’s society; marches, boycotting, striking, artwork, even literature. Regardless of all the different types, there is always one common goal in mind: To bring about change. Literature can be a much more subtle form of protest but has the power to be just as effective. In Divided We Fall by Trent Reedy, the goal is to reform an oppressive government. However, he makes the reader actually figure out what he’s protesting without just telling you. This book is just one example of many influential forms of protest documents. Literature is an effective form of protest because it can show varying perspectives of a problem, can be used as a subtle call to action, and it can show a problem through a story. The goal of Divided We Fall is to get the audience to realize how powerful and forceful the government is actually becoming. It starts with seventeen year old Danny Wright who is in the National Guard and gets called in to deal with a …show more content…
His gun accidentally fires and shots get exchanged where many protesters die. An outraged federal government demands for the names of the soldiers to be released as well as for Idaho to comply with the new law. When both demands are denied by the Governor of Idaho, tensions start growing and a civil war breaks out between the national military and the National Guard of Idaho. It shows how far a state will go to protect its constitutional rights when an oppressive national government goes too far. One of the best things about protest literature is that it can show you every side of an issue and the thoughts that may be going through the heads of both sides. In Divided We Fall, the way that Reedy uses every perspective to evaluate the issue at hand is what makes this piece of protest literature so powerful. It also adds a more subtle feeling to the issue because of the unsureness of what side the protagonist is on. The author