I would characterize it as a "universal" theme, as it illustrates that despite occurring at different times and locations, the profound anguish experienced by both combatants and civilians results from the same unfortunate realities such as deprivation, injuries from gunfire, death, torture, and horrific means like being gassed or burned.
The passage from "Civil Disobedience" by Henry David Thoreau that subtly emphasizes the necessity for individuals to think for themselves and challenge authority is: "seen from a higher still, and the highest, who shall say what they are, or that they are worth looking at or thinking of at all?" In this statement, he highlights significant deficiencies within society and poses this question to encourage deeper contemplation beyond the superficial narratives presented by politicians and the media. Thoreau's assertion is that individuals ought to form their own beliefs based on their personal insights.
The four terms in the passage that convey a feeling of suffocation are:
B- confinement: meaning to be restricted indoors. “...after the long day of confinement in the house...”
D- strained: exerting intense mental and physical effort. “...the children strained to get out.” Their strong effort suggests the environment inside was oppressively hot.
E- stifled: the sensation of being unable to breathe due to heat and lack of fresh air. “...in a way that stifled the children...”
F- choke: inability to breathe because of insufficient air or blocked airways. “if they didn’t burst out into the light and see the sun and feel the air, they would choke.”
Mrs. Rowland's narrative has both positive and negative aspects. She, along with her children, was captured and forcibly separated from them. During her captivity, she sewed clothes for the Native Americans in exchange for food, and they did not inflict harm upon her. Instead, they presented her with a Bible, and after her husband paid the ransom, she was released. After 11 weeks of captivity, her family was reunited.
