Losing Julia

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Recommended: Literary impacts of world war 1

In Jonathan Hull's book Losing Julia the main character, Patrick Delaney, was a complicated man. At the age of 18, while still very much an innocent boy, he was sent to Europe to fight in a bloody and terrible war. This exposure to the worst of humanity changed him in many ways. During the war he made some of the best and closest friends he ever had in his life. He also watched these friends die a gruesome death while he was only a hundred feet away, unable to help or save them. His entire outlook on life changed. Before the war he was hopeful and optimistic. Afterwards, life didn't seem as important. He went home and tried to be normal, but he couldn't. He married, had kids, and returned to an everyday job as an accountant, but something inside him was missing. He left an important part of himself on the battlefield. It wasn't until he met Julia, that he felt alive again. Through her he was able to open his heart and his soul. Her presence helped to heal the wounds that the war had left behind. There was a lot that happened to Patrick, love, war, loss, and regret, that made him the type of 81 year old man that he was.
World War I is a pivotal event in Patrick’s life. It was during this event that Patrick learned what it meant to be a man. He was forced to look inside himself and find the courage that was needed to fight. He questioned his morals, values, and faith, and discovered things about himself that he never knew. For the first time in his life he was completely alive and understood how valuable that life was. During this war, he met and became friends with Daniel MacGuire. Dan became like a big brother to him and Pat clung to him for security and used him as a pillar of strength. He was Patrick’s lifeline and when he was killed, Patrick was lost. For the rest of his life Patrick would never be able to get over Dan’s death. He would always feel guilty that he lived and Dan died. This experience left him very cynical, especially about God. He couldn’t understand how someone who was supposed to be all powerful would let something like war happen, and allow a good man, such as Daniel, to die.

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