Student Question
In paragraph 4 of The Diary of Samuel Pepys, how does Pepys's word choice illustrate the Great Fire of London?
Quick answer:
In paragraph 4, Pepys's word choice vividly illustrates the Great Fire of London by describing the chaos and desperation as people attempt to save their belongings by throwing them into the river. His depiction of individuals hesitating to leave their homes until the fire forces them to flee highlights the panic. The poignant image of pigeons burning their wings adds to the scene's emotional intensity, emphasizing the widespread devastation and urgency of the situation.
Samuel Pepys's diary entry of September 2, 1666 begins by recording that he was awakened at 3 a.m. to the news that London was burning. Upon hearing from the Lieutenant of the Tower that the fire had already burned St. Magnus's Church and most of Fish Street, Pepys went to the river.
There, he describes a chaotic scene of "everybody endeavoring to remove their goods, and flinging them into the river" in a desperate effort to preserve what they own. He sees people reluctant to leave their homes until the fire reaches them, at which time they scramble to the safety of boats in the river or stairways that are not yet engulfed. He injects a further note of pathos by describing pigeons who do not want to leave their usual roosting spots and "hovered about the windows and balconies, till they some of them burned their wings and fell down."
It is a catastrophic scene of destruction, and Pepys soon reports to the King and the Duke of York what he has witnessed.
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