War dates back to the earliest of ages. Leaders have come out triumphant and countries have come out ravaged. Entire generations have been extinguished and humanity’s morale destroyed; all at the cost of a victory. Everyone is familiar with war, however we are not so quick to understand the lasting toll it takes on those who experience it for themselves. War has been fought through out many countries for various reasons since the beginning of times, the tactics and warfare themselves may have changed, but the meaning of war remains the same. In turn the soldiers, whom give it all in the name of their countries, never come back the same. It is glittered with words like glory, honor and devotion, however war, in my eyes, is anything but. It brings about many more problems, one of which is the substantial psychological effects it has on those who experience war first hand.
World War I was said to have been the war to end all wars. We now know that not to be true as there have been countless wars since that proposition. The attitudes surrounding the initiation of World War I were very distinct from that of proceeding wars to come. Citizens were excited, families were proud to know that their sons were enlisted and patriotism and brotherhood were alive and well. Young men were very much encouraged to join the war effort and advertisements soliciting the call to arms were seen in a positive light. Enlistment was something expected of these young men, they wouldn’t dare be the ones to be “ostracized” or called “coward” . With no way around the Great War many did indeed join the armed forces; little did they know what they were in for. “A word of command” , and a powerful one at that, put these young men on the path to destruction. ...
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...rd we take, as a war to end all wars was virtually never in sight. We must become human again; as it seems to be the only way to make existence worthy once again.
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As can be seen, Paul Boyer, Tim O’Brien, and Kenneth W. Bagby, convey the notion that war affects the one’s self the most. Through the use of literary devices: tone, mood, pathos, and imagery, these 3 authors portray that war affects a person’s self most of all. War is not only a battle between two opposing sides, but it can also be a mental conflict created within a person. Although war is able to have an effect on physical relationships between family, friends, or even society, conflict within oneself is the most inevitable battle one must face during war times.
War is dangerous; however it does more than injure you physically. “The Sniper” shows how war’s effects on the mind can be just as if not more harmful than its physical effects. The psychological effects of war can change a man and last a lifetime.
There you stand over the body of a fallen friend, a brother or sister in arms. You are asking yourself why them, why not you? What could have I done to save them? That is when you wake up, sweating, panting. It was just a night terror, yet it feels the same as the day they died, even though it has been ten years. This is just one of the many emotional scars soldiers of war face. Though why do we go to war when this is the cost? For many it is because they are unaware of the psychological cost of war, they are only aware of the monetary cost. Tim O 'Brien addresses the true cost of war in The Things They Carried. O 'Brien suggests that psychological trauma caused by war impedes daily life in young Americans drafted into the Vietnam war. He does
The word “War” sends shivers through many people because of the effect war has on individual groups or people, minorities, soldiers and the society.
"The historian Will Durant calculated that there have been twenty nine years in all of human history during which a war was not underway somewhere." (Hedges, 2003). In fact more than half of my lifetime has consisted of the United States, my country, being at war. It is sad to know that I have no experienced peace. It is also alarming because I, like my peers, have become somewhat immune and numb to war. We have come to think of it as just another issue going on, and do not really see it as the drastic event that it really is. It is something that is just there; just in the background.
The Young People of Today, a series of opinion polls conducted among young educated Frenchmen by Henri Massis and Alfred de Tarde find romantic sentiments for war much like von Treitschke. The two authors interviewed a professor who tried to explain that there were in fact unjust wars, however, according to the professor, “the class obviously did not follow me; they rejected that distinction” (Massis and de Tarde 224). Massis and de Tarde go on to write about the many young men who left their high studies to pursue lives as soldiers because for them “it is not enough, for them to learn history: they are making it” (Massis and de Tarde 224).
War is one thing that we all know is a necessary evil. The United States has been involved in many wars since being founded in the late 1700’s. There are many reasons that the United States has been involved in, or is currently involved in wars. Although war is not always a popular thing to become a part of, the full effects of the war are not always known and may never be known as long as the United States is a country. Stephen Crane tells us that there are many effects of war in his poem “War is Kind”. From that it can be derived that physical, mental, family, etc are all effects of war needing to be monitored. All of these effects are causing hardships among the people that are coming home from these battles either directly or indirectly. The full effects of any war are never known and are something that is going to need further investigation to allow professionals such as mental and physical health doctors to provide soldiers with the help they so greatly deserve.
War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, written by the talented author Chris Hedges, gives us provoking thoughts that are somewhat painful to read but at the same time are quite personal confessions. Chris Hedges, a talented journalist to say the least, brings nearly 15 years of being a foreign correspondent to this book and subjectively concludes how all of his world experiences tie together. Throughout his book, he unifies themes present in all wars he experienced first hand. The most important themes I was able to draw from this book were, war skews reality, dominates culture, seduces society with its heroic attributes, distorts memory, and supports a cause, and allures us by a constant battle between death and love.
War has always been something to be dreaded by people since nothing good comes from it. War affects people of all ages, cultures, races and religion. It brings change, destruction and death and these affect people to great extents. “Every day as a result of war and conflict thousands of civilians are killed, and more than half of these victims are children” (Graca & Salgado, 81). War is hard on each and every affected person, but the most affected are the children.
...nstead of continuing a cycle of death, frustration and violence, people should move past others’ imperfections, and should work together to form mutual agreements. Although this may not permanently eliminate wars, it could help prevent them, and help prevent soldiers from losing touch with the reality of death.
If we look at the history of the world with a kaleidoscope, we can see the different aspects of war and what effect it had on the mind of different people and artists such as poets, painters and authors. Many poets romanticized war, luring it with their pen and giving it a beautiful look by glorifying death and obliging young blood to fight for their motherland. For example the poems “Peace” by Rupert Brooke and “Fall In” by Harold Begbie painted war with the highlights of glamorous and sensation. Apart from poets there are also politicians who achieved their aims with the help of war and violence while others who used the weapons of non violence to achieve their goals. The most famous example is of Adolf Hitler who took the aid of war to conquer the territories. The media also has a great impact on the mind of the public, like newspapers, televisions, radios arouses the public’s interest and motivates the young generation to join the army and fight for the nation. However, there are artists who look at war in its very naked form. For example the poet Wilfred Owen in his poem “Dulce Et Decorum Est” demonstrates that no sweetness or honor is earned in dying for one’s country, instead humanity is taken away during war.
Indeed, with the topic of War as our main theme this year, I have come to the conclusion that it certainly brings immeasurable mass destruction. War is an unfortunate event that leads to violence, destruction, slaughter as well as annihilation. The last few centuries mark a significant era of Wars that have killed millions of people. These wars, particularly the U.S. Civil War in 1861 and the Second World War in 1939, give us a broader understanding of the horrors that an individual faced during a violent period.
War has been around for centuries. From the time modern civilizations began, war has played an integral part in human history. It shaped the world into the modern world we live in. War has been said to be a great motivator, for example, the Great Wall of China was built to fend off the attackers from the north. However, the negative aspects of war far outweighs any positive effects it might have. The destruction of civilizations, cities and countries, mass killings of men, woman and children alike, the disastrous effect it has on economy and the after effects of war can last for centuries.