A Comparison of the Techniques Employed in Portraying the Horror of War in Regeneration and Journey's End "I chose the First World War because it's come to stand in for other wars… It's come to stand for the pain of all wars." Pat Barker wrote "Regeneration" in the 1990's and R.C. Sherriff "Journey's End" in 1927, the quote is from Barker and illustrates the magnitude of the effect of the First World War, and expresses the appeal of the subject. Both works use different techniques in their portrayal of horror, and their effectiveness will be examined in turn. The authors chose different formats with one being a novel the other a play, thus giving them contrasting ways of conveying soldiers' experiences of war. In "Regeneration", Barker begins by exploring the character of Sassoon and through opening her novel with the declaration immediately demonstrates the adverse affect that war can have on rational young men. Karin Westman states "When Sassoon asks the public to make use of their imagination, he is asking them to imagine the horrors of the war, to conceive monstrous images, in order to comprehend its destructive force." Barker utilises the factual document to validate the anti-war stance of the novel. Sassoon has found that the horror of war has lead to the disintegration of his men and has morale shattering qualities stating, "I have seen and endured the suffering of the troops, and I can no longer be a party to prolong these sufferings for ends which I believe to be evil and unjust." As a man, we later learn, who has won the Military cross, we come to realise that he is certainly no coward, and his reasons for his de... ... middle of paper ... ... war as expressively as Barker due to the constraints of the stage and the era he was writing in. Barker, through graphic descriptions, vivid imagery and symbolism enables the reader to envisage the destructive effect of the war, especially on young men such as Burns who had their youth taken away from them. Barkers' motives for this bold portrayal lie firmly in her anti-war beliefs and strong political opinions, however as Peter Kemp in the Sunday Times admires she manages to present a great deal of trauma "without a tremor of sensationalism or sentimentality." It is the varied range of techniques she employs that make "Regeneration" a triumphant portrayal of horror in the First World War. Barker forces the reader to consider the impact of war and how the horrendous nature of the combat affected millions of lives.
My thoughts after reading this book are that war can really take a toll on someone and war can bring out the worst in everyone. Works Cited:.. Caputo, Philip. The. A Rumor of War.
Comparing the Presentation of War in the Oliver and Branagh Film Versions of Henry the Fifth
Later in the book, he again reflects on the war. He catalogs the proofs that he has been given — injured and half-starved countrymen — but persists in his existential doubt. He notes, “So we knew a war existed; we had to believe that, just as we had to believe that the name for the sort of life we had led for the last three years was hardship and suffering. Yet we had no proof of it. In fact, we had even less than no proof; we had had thrust into our faces the very shabby and unavoidable obverse of proof…” (94). Because he has not seen the battles, he has difficulty acknowledging the reality of war.
during the war. This novel is able to portray the overwhelming effects and power war has
The imagery in Michael Ondaatje's novel The English Patient serves to illustrate the theme of destruction in this novel. The setting of the novel as well as the characters themselves present to the reader a vivid picture of demolition. Critics also find that Ondaatje's imagery is a vital element in the presentation of this theme.
himself to be a powerful man, has his life unravel before him as he loses
It has not only been a trend, but almost a necessity, for novelists who depict wars to depict humanity. Wars are largely, if not totally, alienating; it alienates humans from who they are—or at least whom they think they are—to fighting machines programmed exclusively for mass destruction and ruthless killing. Romantic love and strong sentiment seem to be incompatible with the nature of wars and are rarely found in wars as well. However, in Cold Mountain, Charles Frazier shows us the reshaping of humanity and personality of the male protagonist Inman during the war; he conveys an idea of rebirth in the war—a process of gradually discovering and finally adopting a new, more introspective self-identity; and this journey to rebirth is led by love, courage, and the desire for freedom.
The difficult association between the occurrence of war and storytelling is told through the eyes of Tim O’Brien; he explains that a true war story has a supreme adherence to offensiveness that provides a sense of pride and courage commonly found in storytelling. “The thing about a story is that you dream it as you tell it, hoping that others might then dream along with you, and in this way memory and im...
Overall, the awareness of the “talking cure” had a critical turn point in Rivers’ belief of the war which explained by Sassoon’s moral reasons in opposing to fight. Rivers realized that it is not up to him whether or not to stop the war, but what it is important is, a person has to be willing to do something rather than to be forced. In the case of Sassoon, although he disguised the fact that he fought for a war that it not justified, he still wanted to go back so that he can be with his fellow soldiers, even if it meant death.
“Every war is everyone’s war”... war will bring out the worst in even the strongest and kindest people. The book tells about how ones greed for something can destroy everything for both people and animals leaving them broken beyond repair, leaving them only with questions… Will they ever see their family again? Will they ever experience what it’s like to
The three narratives “Home Soil” by Irene Zabytko, “Song of Napalm” by Bruce Weigl, and “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen all have the same feelings of war and memory, although not everyone experiences the same war. Zabytko, Weigl, and Owen used shifting beats, dramatic descriptions, and intense, painful images, to convince us that the horror of war far outweighs the devoted awareness of those who fantasize war and the memories that support it.
War does leave people with all kinds of trauma as illustrated in the Bao Ninh’s short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” and Nicola Zavaglia’s documentary film Barbed Wire and Mandolins. When comparing the effectiveness of conveying the trauma of war towards the audiences, however, the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” is more effective due to its well-developed plot and the emotional responses from the readers arising from the story.
It is apparent that during war time emotions are checked at the door and ones whole psyche is altered. It is very difficult to say what the root causes of this are due to the many variables that take play in war, from death of civilians to the death of friends. However, in "Enemies" and "Friends" we see a great development among characters that would not be seen anywhere else. Although relying on each other to survive, manipulation, and physical and emotional struggle are used by characters to fight there own inter psychological wars. Thus, the ultimate response to these factors is the loss and gain of maturity among Dave Jensen and Lee Strunk.
When the war breaks out, this tranquil little town seems like the last place on earth that could produce a team of vicious, violent soldiers. Soon we see Jim thrown into a completely contrasting `world', full of violence and fighting, and the strong dissimilarity between his hometown and this new war-stricken country is emphasised. The fact that the original setting is so diversely opposite to that if the war setting, the harsh reality of the horror of war is demonstrated.
Ondaatje wanted to show how the warfare in the past caused characters to feel like they constantly had to look over their shoulder to confirm their safety. He used description to paint a picture in the reader’s mind to convey what kind of lives these characters were living. The shadow of war will continue to haunt the characters and their consciousness almost like a dark cloud hovering over the tree and its roots. Works Cited "the english patient" by Michael Ondaatje