I think the author’s purpose is to tell us about the war, the “true” war story. He mentions a lot of ways to tell a true war story in the book. Through the stories of the soldiers, through the nasty war, no one can tell the true story about the war because in many cases a true war story cannot be believed or sometimes it’s beyond telling. For instance, in the book, there is a man named Norman Bowker, he almost won the Silver Star by saving his fellow in the Song Tra Bong, a muddy waste river, but because of the strong nasty smell, he gave up. When he came back to home, he wanted to tell people about this, but then he gave up telling because they would not
He is the only soldier that seems to be frightened of battle and he seeks companions that have the same beliefs. When Fleming encounters a real battle, he runs from his first battle and spent time isolated. He encountered injured soldiers, and felt isolated because he was not harmed. Although no one questioned the unharmed soldier, Fleming felt guilty and felt that he betrayed his fellow soldiers. Until Fleming returns to battle with is fellow soldiers, he feels isolated.
Henry had joined the military to earn a name amongst other men. Instead he would flee from a battle and cause his own injury. When Henry returned to camp and lied about the nature of his wound, he highly doubted neither his manhood nor his right to behave as pompously as a veteran. Henry’s lack of a true moral sense manifested itself in the emptiness of the honor and glory that he seeks. A great change occurs within him as he fought, he lost his sense of self.
304 What state was his regiment from? New York What was the youth afraid of when he went back to his regiment? That they would make fun of him because he ran away Did his fears come true? No How did his regiment think he was injured? They thought he had been grazed by a bullet Did the youth tell them the truth?
Another fact proving Henry is guilty of running is that he went into the war scared that he was going to run. Like mentioned before, before the war even started, Henry was asking soldiers what they would do if given the chance. This shows that he wanted to see if other soldiers felt the same way he did. Henry Fleming and the rest of the regiment were marching for days without any battle. He wanted there to be action, but he was scared and didn't want it to start at the same time.
Book Report I chose The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane for this report because it is about fighting and war, one of the few things that interest me in history. The Red Badge of Courage is a story told during the Civil War about Stephen Crane’s (The author’s) youth as a Union soldier. Henry Fleming (The youth) is terrified because it is his first time being in a war. “As the landscape changed from brown to green, the army awakened, and began to tremble with eagerness at the noise of rumors (page 3).” This quote demonstrates how nervous the men in the armt are upon the eve of battle. “The youth had been taught that a man became another thing in battle.
During the time of the Vietnam War thousands of soldiers who felt it was their duty to protect their country lost their life. This, in itself, did not mean that in this story the Lieutenant should have continued on his journey leading to the path of destruction and not have prevented the loss of members of his troop. Neither did the fact that the Lieutenant was of the same age as those in his troop. According to the narrator, O-Brien was a man who took the death of each of his men seriously. It is possible as outlined in this story that he had a change of venue, an epiphany, in that his infatuation and love for a girl back home might be the culprit for his loss of focus in his duty as Lieutenant and that he held himself responsible for loss of lives.
This essay will explore this interpretation of Haig and the generals, but in order to provide a balanced view, I will also consider the positive interpretations of Haig as a leader, as many sources from the time and recently praise him as a good leader. At the time of the war and after, soldiers criticised Haig and the generals , Haig was criticised because he made commands without being in trenches. In source B2 a soldier who had watched his friends die around him due to Haigs incompetence and bad planning, wrote “it was pure bloody murder. Douglas Haig should have been hung, drawn and quartered for what he did on the Somme. The cream of British manhood was shattered in less than 6 hours.” This suggests that he wanted Haig to be punished due to his loss of so many of his own men, but also due to his own resentment towards him.
War is never a pretty thing. We’re separated by the ones we love, lose the ones we care about, and forget who we were before it all began. In the novel All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque, it proves just that when a group of soldier’s lives are completely turned around due to the effects of war. The narrator and protagonist of the book Paul Baumer, persuaded by his schoolmaster Kantorek, volunteers for the war at the tender age of nineteen with friends Kropp, Muller and Leer, hoping to be considered courageous once he joins the war. Kantorek often calls them the iron youth because he describes their efforts as brave and heroic.
Sofia Martinez A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah Reflection As I advance in the book, Ishmael’s innocence starts to fade and at one point is completely gone. Ishmael is now part of the army fighting against the rebel forces. It was a surprise to me that the army techniques in these chapters seem just as brutal as the rebel forces. Although they justify their violence with the defense of their country, their actions are strangely similar. Ishmael seems to be influenced by the techniques that the army uses.