In the novel A Town Like Alice an enduring love gets it’s foundation during WWII when Jean and Joe develop the beginning of their relationship based on needs. Needs that are manifested during the horrific times they endured as prisoners of war. During a time of isolation and degradation the barriers of social status were obliterated and they found comfort in each other as well as a momentary escape from the misery of being prisoners of war. The connection Jean and Joe formed in Malaysia, during WWII, set the foundation for an undying and enduring love that lasted a lifetime. Jean and Joe later crossed continents in order to reunite with one another. “‘Dear Joe. Of course I’m in love with you. What do you think I came to Australia for?’” (248). They had found a bond in the war based on need, a need for companionship and understanding, and in that need they later discovered an enduring love that could never die.
In the novel The English Patient war temporarily eliminated the stigma attached with dark skin and allowed for another love based on mutual needs to blossom. “His only human and personal contact was this enemy who had made the bomb and departed…” (105). Kip’s connection with Hana allowed him to connect with humanity again. The love he discovered with Hana filled a need of Kip’s to never be weak. “He refused to believe in his own weakness, and with her he had not found a weakness to fit himself against” (114). The English Patient also substantiates the fact that love during war gives a reason to hope in often hopeless times.
In the novel Return of the Soldier rather than unite lovers war seemed to separate a love that was meant to be between Chris and Margaret. Chris and Margaret were truly in love but war, although tempor...
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...ould run down his cheeks, which was to her the most dreadful thing of all, to see a man like Septimus, who had fought, who was brave, crying” (137). His shell shock is exacerbated by the fact the medical field didn’t fully understand or acknowledge the seriousness of shell shock during that time. Neither his family nor his doctors had any idea what he was dealing with or how to help him. War and his mental illness were the cause of Septimus feeling separate from life. Separate mentally and emotionally. Septimus felt trapped, although he did not want to die he felt that there was no way to escape besides death. “’I’ll give it you!’ he cried, and flung himself vigorously, violently down on to Mrs. Filmer’s area railings” (146).
Atonement and Mrs. Dalloway show that war is an unimaginable horror but it also shows that the human condition has unimaginable strengths.
Many war stories today have happy, romantic, and cliche ending; many authors skip the sad, groosom, and realistic part of the story. W. D. Howell’s story, Editha and Ambrose Bierce’s story, An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge both undercut the romantic plots and unrealistic conclusions brought on by many stories today. Both stories start out leading the reader to believe it is just another tpyical love-war senario, but what makes them different is the one-hundred and eighty degrees plot twist at the end of each story. In the typical love-war story the soldier would go off to war, fighting for his country, to later return safely to his family typically unscaved.
The Roman philosopher Seneca the Younger once said “Perjor est bello timor ipse belli”, which translates to: “the dread of war is worse than war itself”. With this quote, Seneca identifies that war has both its physical and mental tolls on its participants. The psychological and emotional scars of war do much more damage to a solider than the actual physical battles. Tim O’ Brien repeats this idea many years later in his novel “The Things They Carried”, by describing how emotional burdens outweigh the physical loads that those in war must endure. What keeps them alive is the hope that they may one day return home to their loved ones. Yet, the weight of these intangible “items” such as “grief, terror, love, longing” overshadow the physical load they must endure since they are not easily cast away.
After an event of large magnitude, it still began to take its toll on the protagonist as they often “carried all the emotional baggage of men who might die” during the war (O’Brien 1187). The travesties that occurred with the brutality of war did not subside and began to affect those involved in a deeply emotional way. The multitude of disastrous happenings influenced the narrator to develop a psychological handicap to death by being “afraid of dying” although being “even more afraid to show it” (O’Brien 1187). The burden caused by the war creates fear inside the protagonist’s mind, yet if he were to display his sense of distress it would cause a deeper fear for those around him, thus making the thought of exposing the fear even more frightening. The emotional battle taking place in the psyche of the narrator is directly repressed by the war.
During the war, army regulations and rationing made it extremely difficult for soldiers to marry. Marriage of soldiers to civilians was not encouraged by commanding officers; in fact, it was forbidden in most cases (Jarratt, 2009). This rule was not heeded by many Canadian soldiers; it was difficult to forbid any young man to pursue love, especially under the circumstances provided by the Second World War. Because many young British soldiers were in all corners of Europe, it is unsurprising that the young women of Britain turned to the Canadians when they arrived. Emotions seemed heightened by the war and relationships blossomed. Quite often, couples were engaged within months after meeting because of the uncertainty of the times. Their hastiness was hindered, though, by the many army regulations imposed. “Forms had to be filled out, appointments made, medical exams taken… A Canadian serviceman had to obtain permission to marry from his commanding officer before a wedding date could be set...
Brothers tend to have a unique relationship, one that is incomparable to a friend, but in the story “The Red Convertible” by writer Louise Erdrich, shows us how war can alter the friendship between two brothers, when one of them comes back from war. The Author takes us through the struggles that two brothers will face, and try to overcome after on of them, Henry, comes back from war. Upon Henrys’ return, Lyman will try to fix his relationship with his brother, until both will give up and accept, the consequences of the experiences they faced through the story. war can benefit a relationship, the red convertible shows us how the friendship between two brothers is before the war, and how it changes after it, and all the damages that causes to someone’s mental state.
It is evident that the occurrence of war throughout history has made a lasting impression on soldiers and civilians alike. This has been expressed over the years through different works of literature. The cost of war to the individual is illustrated in “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich, “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, and “The Shawl” by Cynthia Ozick because each story shows some element of mental, emotional, and physical toll.
Warfare not only results in majority of casualties but also affect individuals both physically and psychologically. This can damage their sense of purpose and identity which can lead to difficulties in the way they relate to others. Art and religion proves to be the saviour of these individuals by helping them respond to the effects and aftermath of war with valour and resilience which not only helps them cope with stress and grief but also gives them the opportunity to interact and connect with others. David Roxborough argues that “Ondaatje’s method of alternating mythical identity allows the efficient construction of a panoramic religious framework with widespread mythical significance.” Similarly, Alice Brittan claims that “Ondaatje’s novel is filled with [……] scenes of reading and writing, and characters who delight in marginalia.” Both the authors agree that Ondaatje’s novel The English Patient utilizes imagery and mythology to explain the atrocities of the Second World War, and to explicate that religion and the admiration of art attempts to defy the violent human displacements enabled by war, and helps to transcend the crude realities of the world.
Cross eventually concedes that Martha belongs to another world and would never love him (Obrien, 17). The two novels use love as a strong metaphor for the losses of war. Ninh often explicitly states that both Kien and every other solider would be forever warped due to the senseless cruelties witness in the long conflict. Kien’s deep love for Phuong is destroyed by the war, as is Lieutenant Cross’s love for Martha.
The character Septimus struggled with the condition shell shock, and a friend’s death during the war alone. Since Septimus lived in a society where everything needed to be perfect, he had doctors, who believed his condition was only temporary, but the truth was Septimus was only getting worse. The problem was nobody in the society wanted to face Septimus’ reality, and Septimus’ reality was everything was going to die anyway, so why try to survive with death all around. After Sir William told Septimus that everyone has depressed moments, Septimus said, “Once you fall, human nature is on you’’ (Woolf, 109). Septimus believed once you make mistakes or have a reality shock, death will come after one person, and death will not stop chasing them until they fall into death’s
The film The Trojan Women does not depict war as most films do, a grueling brawl on the war front between two forces, leaving men and widowed women in its blood-filled wake. This film goes beyond that typical portrayal of war to focus on the aspects of war that viewers are not used to seeing, the effects of war on the homeland. This film primarily centers on the impacts of war that those still at home must endure, left behind by their loved ones who trade life and limb for the safety of their country and family. The widows in this film must cope with multiple torments of war; losing a loved one to battle, leaving their old life behind, and battling the mental hardship that accompanies these tragic events. The film does not place the emphasis
Fear, anxiety, survival skills, and habits are four effects that Ondaatje used in “The English Patient” to portray how the cultural history of war impacted Kip and Caravaggio’s personal history as well as their lifestyle. Ondaatje wanted to show how the warfare in the past caused characters to feel like they constantly have 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 consciousnesses almost like a dark cloud hovering over the tree and its roots
Virginia Woolf’s first description of Septimus Smith immediately gives the reader the sense that Septimus is not mentally well. “Septimus Warren Smith, aged about thirty, pale-faced, beak-nosed, wearing brown shoes and a shabby overcoat, with hazel eyes which had that look of apprehension in them which makes complete strangers apprehensive too. The world has raised its whip; where will it descend?” (Woolf 14) The final sentence in this passage adds significance to the description of Septimus’s apprehensive look. Septimus is completely convinced that the world is ultimate evil and that it is out to get him. This is a prime example of fearing that people are hostile and plotting to destroy him which is a symptom of paranoid schizophrenia.
Love in the novels of Hemingway is not a sentimental affair where lovers cry and long for one another. His concept of love unlike that of Charles Dickens is realistic and an urgent need of body and mind which explains why lovers in the novels of Hemingway form sexual and emotional intimacy...
War has the capacity to foster love while equalizing social status. The novels The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje and A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute substantiate the fact, through fiction, that during war-time men and women who are not of the same station in life can find an incomparable love with one another. Each novel also gives evidence of love igniting during war and surviving the trials of time and distance. Hana and Kip from The English Patient and Jean and Joe both go through these trials and tribulations associated with love and war. Whether that love is doomed for failure or a future together forever…it never dies.
Theme is a literary element used in literature and has inspired many poets, playwrights, and authors. The themes of love and war are featured in literature, and inspire authors to write wartime romances that highlight these two themes. Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms deals with the collective themes in the human experience such as love and the reality of war. A Farewell to Arms is narrated from the perspective of Fredric Henry, an ambulance driver in the Italian army, and pertains to his experiences in the war. The novel also highlights the passionate relationship between Henry and Catherine Barkley, a British nurse in Italy. Henry’s insight into the war and his intense love for Catherine emphasize that love and war are the predominant themes in the novel and these themes contribute to bringing out the implicit and explicit meaning of the novel. Being a part of the Italian army, Henry is closely involved with the war and has developed an aversion to the war. Henry’s association with the war has also made him realise that war is inglorious and the sacrifices made in war are meaningless. Specifically, Henry wants the war to end because he is disillusioned by the war and knows that war is not as glorious as it is made up to be. The state of affairs and the grim reality of the war lead Henry towards an ardent desire for a peaceful life, and as a result Henry repudiates his fellow soldiers at the warfront. Henry’s desertion of the war is also related to his passionate love for Catherine. Henry’s love for Catherine is progressive and ironic. This love develops gradually in “stages”: Henry’s attempt at pretending love for Catherine towards the beginning of the novel, his gradually developing love for her, and finally, Henry’s impas...