Chaos or Peace, Your Choice War never changes. It starts with a drop of blood and ends with a sea, but it isn’t the spilling of blood that stops the chaos. Peace is brought by the magnanimous who look past each other’s faults, not the cold-hearted and unsympathetic. The short stories “Lather and Nothing Else” and “Gregory” both explore the theme that it is better for opposing sides to show trust and empathy with each other rather than displaying ruthlessness and needless violence because mutual understanding PREVENTS FURTHER CONFLICT. Captain Torres trusts the barber not to slit his throat which then leads to them being empathic to one another and developing a relationship, similar to when Gregory trusts the guerrillas with his life which …show more content…
allows a bond to grow between them. The barber not killing Torres prevented tensions from escalating between the rebels and the military, akin to the guerrillas not stringing up Gregory’s body which would have been a catalyst to the conflict. In both stories, characters realise the significance of showing trust and amity with each other and attempt to gain some mutual understanding which is a step towards NEUTRALIZING THE CONFLICT.
In “Gregory”, the guerrilla soldiers eat with Gregory and also listen and talk to him. Gregory even knocks a scorpion off a soldier’s leg, saving his life. The guerrilla soldiers can’t help but think, “‘Eh, well, these people have the same headaches in their country as we’ve got’ “(Ioannides, 2). This passage is significant because the soldiers empathize with Gregory, understanding his problems and they find common ground with each other. This common ground leads to mutual understanding, which leads to peace, the ultimate goal. Similarly in “Lather and Nothing Else”, Captain Torres trusts that the barber will not leave an oozing gash in his throat when he visits the barber for what seems like just a shave. While leaving the shop Torres says, “‘They kept saying you would kill me. I came to find out if it was true. But killing’s not easy. Believe me, I know’ “(Tellez, 4). This portion of dialogue is meaningful because IT SHOWS HOW MUCH TORRES TRUSTED HIM and the barber understands that Torres does not unnecessarily kill the rebels. The two empathize with each other, gaining mutual understanding, therefore DIFFUSING THE
CONFLICT. In both stories, characters prevent conflicts from escalating by choosing not to resort to violent and ruthless tactics. In “Gregory”, the guerrilla soldiers decide against hanging Gregory from a telegraph pole. Instead, they give him a respectful burial. After they shoot Gregory, the soldiers say “‘We will hang him tonight’…‘Is that what you all want?’ I asked. They gave no answer. ‘Dig a grave’ I said” (Ionnaides, 4). This passage is significant because even though the guerrillas KILL Gregory, their friendship with Gregory prompts them to show him the proper respect he deserves. Because of this, Gregory was not hung from the telegraph pole, which would have invited further conflict instead of working towards peace. Comparably in “Lather and Nothing Else”, the barber decides to keep Torres alive instead of killing him in the shop when he has the chance. While shaving Torres, the barber thinks “More and more people come and the first group kills the second who kills the third, and it continues on and on until the world is a sea of blood” (Tellez, 3). In this passage, the barber realizes that killing Torres will only make the conflict worse and it will do the opposite of solving his problems. Killing and violence only lead to more of it, while peace and forgiveness are the only cure to the bloodshed.
“It’s time to be blunt… I want you to feel what I felt” (O’Brien 171). There are two sides to every war and throughout the novel The Things They Carried, the author Tim O’Brien creates a war in the reader’s mind centered on trust. O’Brien forces the reader to realize the impact of a true war story where, instead of giving an accurate account, he blurs the lines about the importance of trust and gives an emotionally driven anecdote. The author establishes ethos in a unique way by impacting the credibility of a story rarely with facts and forcing the reader to focus on what is more important to him: evoking emotion. These emotions envelop the entirety of Tim O 'Brien 's short stories, showing his clear intentions to make the reader feel what
War is the means to many ends. The ends of ruthless dictators, of land disputes, and lives – each play its part in the reasoning for war. War is controllable. It can be avoided; however, once it begins, the bat...
These men are transformed into guilt-laden soldiers in less than a day, as they all grapple for a way to come to terms with the pain of losing a comrade. In an isolated situation, removed from the stressors, anxieties, and uncertainties of war, perhaps they may have come to a more rational conclusion as to who is deserving of blame. But tragically, they cannot come to forgive themselves for something for which they are not even guilty. As Norman Bowker so insightfully put it prior to his unfortunate demise, war is “Nobody’s fault, everybody’s” (197).
Many people lose things everyday, but the truth is you never know how much you need something until it’s gone. In the books “Going Over” by Beth Kephart and “brown girl dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson the theme; you never know how much you need something until it’s gone is perfect for both books because of the tragic loss of Jackie’s grandfather and the separation of Ada and Stefan. This theme is supported by Jacqueline’s move to New York, Ada and her deep longing for Stefan since the wall separated them, and Jacqueline losing her grandfather.
Another unique aspect to this book is the constant change in point of view. This change in point of view emphasizes the disorder associated with war. At some points during the book, it is a first person point of view, and at other times it changes to an outside third person point of view. In the first chapter of the book, “The Things They Carried,” O’Brien writes, “The things they carried were largely determined by necessity (2).
First, murder as a means of revenge is unjustifiable in the short story "Just Lather, That's All" because the barber is too proud to kill. The barber loves his profession and admitted in the short story "I am a good barber, the best in the town, if I may say so." (Tellez, pg 2-3). This quote helps prove the thesis because the barber is proud to say that he is the best barber in town so he would not like to jeopardize is career to murder someone as a revenge. Secondly, the barber is too proud of his profession than to be a rebel, and has told the readers "Yes, I was secretly a rebel, but I was also a conscientious barber, and proud of the preciseness o...
During times of war, man is exposed to the most gruesome aspects of life such as death, starvation, and imprisonment. In some cases, the aftermath is even more disastrous, causing posttraumatic stress disorder, constant guilt, as well as physical and mental scarring, but these struggles are not the only things that humans can take away from the experience. War can bring out the appreciation of the little things in life, such as the safety people take for granted, the beauty of nature, and the kindness of others. These universal consequences of fighting all contribute to what war is really capable of doing, sometimes bringing out the best and worst in people, and constantly shaping society. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien goes through this himself when he writes about setting up base camp in the Vietnamese pagoda, the return to site of Kiowa’s death, the story about the old poppa-san guide, and Mitchell Sanders’ “moment of peace”. When O’Brien includes these stories, it is not to insert joy into a tragedy, but rather to create a more wholesome and authentic feel into a tough, realistic war story. O’Brien’s’ “sweet” stories are there to show the hope he had during war, and also serve as a universal example that even in the darkest tunnels, it is always possible to find rays of light.
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 war Daru had requested to be transferred to a small town, where the silence of the town echoes in the schoolhouse; and it was hard on him. Now that he has company the same silence still muter the house. He thought about war and how he fought next to other men, whom he got to know and to love. The presence of the Arab imposes on Daru a feeling of brotherhood that he knew very well, and that he didn’t want to share. Men that fought together, or share rooms, or were prisoners or soldiers grow a peculiar alliance. However, Daru tries not to think about it, such feelings aren’t good for him. Daru wishes the Arab runs away because he feels as much of a prisoner as the
Dealing with enemies has been a problem since the beginning of time. “I never killed anybody,” Gene had commented later in his life, “And I never developed an intense level of hatred for the enemy. Because my war ended before I ever put on a uniform, I was on active duty all my time at Devon; I killed my enemy there.” In A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, the value of dealing with enemies is shown by Gene, who was dealing with few human enemies, but his emotions created far greater rivals than any human could ever posses.
A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain ...
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.
The Poem “Dulce et Decorum Est” attempts to make war seem as repulsive as possible. The author’s goal is to discourage people from joining the war or any future conflicts by shattering the romantic image people have of the fighting. The setting of this poem helps
In Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis and in Ishmael Beah’s A Long Way Gone, both authors commentate on the romanticism of violence that is often associated with war. Because of this, the authors are able to dispel misconceptions surrounding war. Furthermore, the memoirs allow the authors reflect upon their own experiences of war during their childhoods, as well as examine how cultural shifts perpetuated by both war and the increased influence of western culture that took place within their cultures shaped who they became. Through their memoirs, the authors portray the reality of war and violence through cultural experiences.
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.