Structure
The structure of a text refers to the way in which events are organised in the work as a whole.
How Many Miles to Babylon? is written in the first personThe 'I' or 'we' used by a narrator who is a participant in a narrative, in contrast to the third person - 'he', 'she' or 'they' - of a narrator who is not directly involved. narrative voice from the point of view of an adult man, Alexander Moore (known as Alec), who describes himself as “an officer and a gentleman”.
When we first meet him, he is in a military jail, awaiting execution during World War One.
There is a cyclicalGoing in cycles, returning to where it began. structure to the novel, with a flashback to Alec’s childhood and the events leading up to his sentence embedded in the present tense narrative of the adult Alec.
This structure hooks the reader from the beginning as there are clues that the character is awaiting execution, but we must read on to find out what has led to this situation.
From the beginning then we know that there is no hope and that death is inevitable for the narrator.
The final revelation that he has shot his best friend is an unexpected and shocking conclusion.
The flashback device - written in the past tense - allows Johnston to explain the events that led to Alec’s sentencing in chronologicalEvents are written or spoken about in the order in which they actually happened. order and gives us an in-depth insight into the character’s thoughts and feelings.
The proseThe ordinary form of language (spoken or written); different from poetry (which does not reflect everyday speech patterns). style changes when Alec talks about his memories of childhood fun with Jerry.
Here the joy in his narration is shown through the imageryThe use of language to create images and pictures in the reader's mind.used in his poetic descriptions of nature. This contrasts with his unhappy family life.
Alec’s narration, in polished Standard EnglishCorrect English with no use of slang., allows us to identify his class and therefore to see the differences when Jerry speaks in colloquialismAn informal word used in everyday speech..
The first person voice therefore allows Johnston to impliedTo suggest an idea without saying it directly. a lot about the character without having to explicitly tell us.
The novel can be broken into four main sections:
- our introduction to Alec and his present situation;
- Alec’s childhood;
- Alec’s time in the trenches;
- Alec’s present day situation when we learn the reason he is awaiting execution.
The novel ends on a tragic note as we see that both men - whom we have known since their childhood innocence - have been broken and killed by war.
Both characters are still young, with great potential and many dreams for the future.
Through them Johnston is therefore able to make a strong comment about the futility of war.
