Ground Zero Essay Example

the author tried to demonstrate the damage that the event had caused – left nothing behind, and took hundreds of lives. The overall impression from Berne`s depiction of the visit, seems to be a wordless movie, where people stand in disbelief and despair.

The feeling of emptiness is unbearable, and it is dominating in the Berne`s essay. An elderly man touches the elbow of his son (this gesture is very sensitive, and it implies unity and fulfillment of past and present human lives), and, staring at the site, recalls “an absence before there was an absence” (11). The struggle inside the man can be transferred to the consensual striving of all the visitors on that day. The realization of “nothing” (3), that becomes “absence” (3) is rather deep, and psychologically intense, especially to the out-of-towner, whho comes to the reappraisal of “curiosity” (5) and “hopefulness” (5) in emptiness and hopelessness. The site seems to be a “dark theater into a bright afternoon” (6) after the the illusions had gone.

The difficulty to find a ticket for the viewing platform is expressed in the vagueness of the gestures of the police officers, and their bald resignation is the longing to avoid the facts and impressions, which might disrupt their peace of mind. The “incredulousness” (14) that pervaded even the arms of the law, instills uncertainty in future, and the “cheerfully painted kiosk” (15) with the juggler seems nothing, but a sarcasm in the face of the occurred disaster. The scene of the remains, carried up from the pit is imbued with a feeling of great pain: the honor guard, the instant pause in the deli, the mournful

respect to the victims.

“Ground Zero” became a place of awe and devastation, but recognition and respect merged on the viewing platform, and the embodiment of cultures and feelings form a propulsive force, which likens to resuscitation. Berne emphasizes that death has no power over the energy of life, and she uses all her sentiments to prove this.