“Laugh and Be Merry” by John Masefield explains the main idea that C. Life is short; laugh and be merry.
The poem insists that the song of merry and laughter makes the world a better place. Such happiness helps in eradicating the sadness and negativity of the world. Further, it insists that the world becomes a better place when justice is served to those who did wrong, <em>“Better the world with a blow in the teeth of a wrong.”</em>
Linking it with the first line that happiness and laughter help in seeking justice.
The life is short like <em>“a thread the length of a span”</em>, hence, asking to laugh in the short span of life and make it meaningful. In the end, the poem insists to not to laugh just for oneself but for the humanity and history.
Both
It explains: the slowdown
<span>General Barker bustled about the house like a woman preparing Thanksgiving dinner for twenty.
This is the best example of irony. The excerpt describes General Barker, who occupies a traditionally very masculine profession, preparing for the demonstration of the most destructive weapon in the history of mankind as if he were a woman bustling about the house preparing Thanksgiving dinner. This juxtaposition creates a sense of irony. </span>
