Genre
Children's Literature
Setting and Context
On the last day of summer at the Wall
Narrator and Point of View
The narrator of the story was Grandfather Yook. The story is told from the first-person perspective.
Tone and Mood
The tone of the story is belligerent and indignant. The mood, however, is exhilarating and fun.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonist of the story is Grandfather Yook while the antagonist of the story is VanItch the Zook.
Major Conflict
On the other side of the wall, lived the Zooks who ate their bread with the butter side down. There has always been a rivalry between the Yooks and the Zooks. The battle between these two nations began when VanItch slingshotted Grandpa Zook's switch. Ever since then, it was their mission to defeat each other. Their battle slowly progressed from switches and slingshots to guns and bombs.
Climax
The peak of the story took place when Grandpa Yook and VanItch the Zook stood face to face at the Wall, each with a bomb in their hand.
Foreshadowing
Despite the several inventions both of them had, neither Grandpa Yook nor VanItch the Zook actually attacked the other side. At the end of the story, the boy asks, "Will you or will he?" However, based on their previous actions, it can be speculated that neither Grandpa Yook nor VanItch the Zook will actually drop the bomb and destroy the other side.
Understatement
N/A
Allusions
N/A
Imagery
The author uses illustrations to highlight the absurdity of the battle between the Yooks and the Zooks.
Paradox
In the story, the Yooks and the Zooks made a big issue on how one eats bread with butter. Despite them seeing each other as very different beings, they are actually very similar. Their similarities can be seen in the battle preparations and even during the battle proper. They look at themselves as opposites when, in fact, they are actually more similar than they are different.
Parallelism
The similarities of the Zooks and the Yooks show how parallel the two nations are. Both their actions and their words show a deliberate parallel between the Yooks and the Zooks.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
Both Grandpa Yook and VanItch the Zooks represented their side of the wall. Grandpa Yook represented those who eat with the butter side up, the Yooks, while VanItch represented those who eat with the butter side down, the Zooks.
Personification
In the middle of their battle, they both recruited animals to fight alongside them. A dog and a herd of elephants, in that scenario, were given actions and emotions that only people are capable of having.
