The Machine Gunners

Essay by rsg210290 September 2004

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The novel "The Machine Gunners" by Robert Westall achieves an artistic balance between setting, characterisation and plot that allows the author to communicate powerfully the themes of the novel. By careful analysis and evaluation show the truth of the above statement.

The novel has a widespread appeal for it's audience, but is pacifically aimed at teenagers or older children because of the main characters are all in their teens and with its on the edge of your chair, non stop, thrilling action from finding a machine gun, to building a fortress and capturing an enemy pilot while trying to keep the whole thing a secret.

In the second world war, in the town of Garmouth, a fourteen year old boy Chas McGill and his friends, are all into collecting war souvenirs, find something superior to the rest of their or anyone one else in Garmouth collection, a German aircraft machine gun loaded with two thousand bullets that are able to go through a tree trunk half a mile away.

They use this opportunity to help defend themselves and the rest of the country against the Germans. They build a fortress to store the gun when the police start getting suspicious. They then sneakily keep it a secret from the police, army and their parents by always making sure the aren't being followed building the fortress in a non remote area and even passing the blame to one of their enemy when their teacher tries to trick them.

Who are the "machine gunners" and why are the given this title? Chas McGill and his friends are the 'machine gunners" after Chas finding a machine gun and they all build a fortress to store it.

The novel's title is appealing and interesting so it attracts readers but I think other possible...