“Faithful Elephants: A True Story of Animals, People and War” Written by Yukio Tsuchiya is a short story focused on the problems of war. War has a huge effect on the plot of the story because a city (In this case Tokyo) during a time of peace is very different from the same city during wartime. It creates unseen problems that may not have even been considered before the war.
War changes so much in the world around it and this is what causes the conflict of “Faithful Elephants” - the elephants of the Ueno Zoo were ordered (by the army) to be killed so they would not be freed by a bomb falling on the cages and terrorize the city. This is something that does not seem to have been considered until the war was upon them. “What would happen if bombs hit the zoo? If the cages were broken and dangerous animals allowed to run wild through the city, it would be terrible!” No plans were made in case of bombs dropping on Tokyo to move the animals to a safer, much more rural place.
This picture of war is a much different one than that of the present in “Faithful Elephants”, although the effects of the war are shown on the current- day Ueno Zoo. The atmosphere of the present seems by far more cheerful and happy than that of the past. There are many examples of this shown, especially when there is such a lively enthusiastic atmosphere surrounding the beginning scene. “The cherry blossoms are in full bloom at the Ueno Zoo. Their petals are falling in the soft breeze and sparkling in the sun. Beneath the cherry trees, crowds of people are pushing to enter the zoo on such a beautiful day.” this an example of one of the few cheerful lines throughout the text. The tone of these sentences is very different than that of the story the zookeeper tells or even that of the scene described around the tombstone.
There is a significant difference between the separate time periods within the short story that is shown very clearly throughout the entirety of “Faithful Elephants” this is shown especially in the two similes used in the beginning of the flashback and last sentence of the short story: “Bombs were dropped on Tokyo every day and night, like falling rain.” this is interesting because later it can be compared with “He was still patting the tombstone tenderly as the cherry blossoms fell on the grave, like snowflakes.” These two sentences from the text seem to be trying to express the variation and contrast between the war and the cherry blossom filled spring. Also the reactions to snow and rain are something like: rain is disappointing while many people enjoy the beauty of snow, although it does mean chilly weather. This may also be interpreted as the anger about the war waning and turning cold after it is over.
Past and present are actually slightly similar. There is such a contrast between the two that some might think that they have nothing in common, but the somber feel surrounding the flashback is still present in today, interestingly enough, around the tombstone and zookeeper telling the tale. The horrors of the past are remembered and have an effect on the happiness of anything having to do with it. This said however, it is only a diluted version of the fear of the war and looking back on it doesn’t exactly have the same feel. “With tears in his eyes, the zookeeper finished his story ‘These three elephants- John, Tonky and Wanly- are now resting peacefully under this monument.’” This sentence only slightly resembles the sadness after the elephants die because although the zookeeper is crying at the memory, the death he describes seems to bring more anger than sadness from the zookeepers from before. Such as, “Still clinging to the elephants, the zoo keepers raised their fists to the sky and implored, ‘Stop the war! Stop the war! Stop all wars!’” This is a more furious and upset reaction to the unfair effects of the war than the simple sorrow and mournful sadness of the storyteller in the present-day.
All of these comparisons and contrasts show exactly how the war affects everything around it in different ways. Sometimes it drastically changes that time period, and sometimes it leaves scars that cannot be erased by the lack of violence. “Faithful Elephants” is especially interesting because the entirety of the conflict is shown as a memory. The world would be very different without the changes conflict leaves behind.
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