Structure

The short story “The Tree of War” by Tanya Datta follows a ten-year-old boy named Krishna during an evening, while he returns home af…

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Beginning

The action begins in media res (or in the middle of events): Krishna, the main character, is playing war with his two friends, Feargal and Angus. The exposition presents part of their game and also introduces the main character’s mother:

I am about to nuke Hawaii. That’s right. I, Krishna th…

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Middle

In the rising action, we find out more about the Nuclear War game and about the place where the boys spend their time - the tree of war:

After we came up with the game of Nuclear War we had to map out our battleground which, in our case, was no less than the entire planet.
‘That’s the United States of America.’ Angus pointed at one of the main branches.
‘This is the Soviet Union.’ I slapped the branch that I was sitting on. (ll. 57-60)

Particular attention is given to the street in North London where the boys live:

The three of us live on the same street in North London in a jam-packed row of houses that feels like a line of policemen linking arms to keep something out. From our front doors the concrete city spreads out all the way to the skyscrapers in the distance. (ll. 50-53)

The story also relies on flashback when Krishna, on his way home, thinks about his father: “When Mum first told me that my fat…

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Ending

After the father tries to convince Krishna to help him and his mother get back together, the boy begins to cry and the climax is reached:

‘Why did you have to come, Dad? Mum and me were so happy before you appeared. You’ve spoiled everything. You just sit at home all day. You can’t even get a job. Don’t you get it? No one …