Religion in Pat Barker's Regeneration
In Pat Barker's novel Regeneration, one of the main characters, Dr. Rivers, is presented with a patient who is not mentally ill at all, but very sane. In trying to "heal" this patient, Rivers begins to have an internal conflict about the job he is doing and the job he should be doing. He is fighting with himself until on page 149, he is in a church where they are singing a very popular hymn, "God Moves in a Mysterious Way." At this point, Rivers is able to begin resolving his conflict. By using this hymn, Barker is able to emphasize one of the novel's theme: in times of war, reflection on religion not only brings peace to a country, but can bring peace within yourself.
The author of the famous hymn "God Moves in a Mysterious Way" is William Cowper. He was born to John Cowper and Ann Donne on November 26, 1731. In 1768, Cowper moved to Olney in Buckinghamshire ("William Cowper"). Three years later, he started what would be known as the "Olney Hymns," but because of severe melancholy, Cowper did not finish this work until 1779. The very last hymn in this book is "Light Shining out of Darkness" (Cowper). This hymn is the one that most Christians all over England would know as "God Moves in a Mysterious Way." Even though the hymn may not have been as popular among the soldiers on the battlefield, according to Alan Wilkenson's book, The Church of England and the First World War, "[a]t home, 'God moves in a mysterious way' was a very popular hymn" (157). Historians did not comment on why this particular hymn was so popular during the war. However, the verses in the hymn remind Christians that God is watching over them, and that He has a purpose for everything He does (Cowper). This idea may have provided some reassurance to the families and friends of soldiers on the battlefield. Those with loved ones serving their country may have found comfort knowing that God had a plan, and that He was watching over their soldiers.
Other hymns, as well as religion in general, were an important part of the soldiers' and officers' lives. Over forty million prayer books, hymn books, and Bibles were distributed among soldiers during the first two years of war by several different agencies. Many of the books had the typical inscription: "Please carry this in your pocket and read it every day" (Wilkinson 153).
The most interesting thing I found while reading this story is that even though the soldiers carried a ton of weight around with them, they insisted on carrying as much as possible to insist they were prepared for any given situation. Also, just as we are all different individuals, each soldier carried their own personal things that depended on their own habits and hobbies. Some examples of the necessities the soldiers had to carry with them include, “Among the necessities or near-necessities were P-38 can openers, pockets knives, heat tabs, wrist-watches, dog tags, mosquito repellent, chewing gum, candy, cigarettes, salt tablets, packets of Kool-Aid, lighters, matches, sewing kits, Military Payment Certificates, C-rations, and two or three canteens of water (O’Brien 125). These were just some of the things these men had to carry with them just to undergo some of the conditions surrounding them. Besides those items I explained things like weapons and magazines made up most of the majority of the weight.
One of the clearest points in The Things They Carried is that of the importance of certain objects or feelings used by the soldiers of Alpha Company to survive the war. Jimmy Cross, the leader the group, carries a picture of a Martha, a girl who writes him from the states. Jimmy knows that there is no real relationship between the two, but he uses the picture the help keep him connected to the world he was forced to leave behind. He creates stories in his head about what will happen when he makes it back home, alive. The Bible carried by Kiowa was given to him by his father. When the book is mentioned, it is referring to the smell of the New Testament: the leather, glue, ink and paper. Kiowa carries the Bible as more of a remembrance then as a show of his faith. The stockings carried by Henry Dobbins came from his girlfriend. He carefully raps them around his neck each time the company moves out. Even after his girlfriend ends the relationship, Henry continues to wear the stockings because in his mind, their symbolism has not changed. All these items are psychological tools used by the soldiers to keep them connected to their homes and loved ones. The items are not important just because of who gave them to the soldiers, rather they are important because they seem like t...
Tulley, Stephen Richard. “Awakened to the Holy.” Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God! In
Every culture has its own unique values, beliefs and norms. Culture defines the identity and interests of a society. Understanding other’s culture is crucial in preparing ourselves for the global experience in the twenty-first century. As the world is becoming more connected to each other, interaction between cultures is unavoidable. I consider myself lucky to live in one of the most diverse cities in the world where I get chance to interact with people of different cultures. In this paper, I will discuss my findings about Family Structure in a Mexican culture, and Dating and Marriage in an African / Gabonese culture. Having a chance to understand various cultures, I realized that beliefs and practices tend to vary from culture to culture.
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, altruism is defined as an “unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others”. In simpler terms, altruism is unconditional kindness. Altruistic behavior has been a controversial and obscure subject among biologists, including Charles Darwin, who was one of the first to try and explain this phenomenon. “To explain the evolution of altruism, Charles Darwin suggested that natural selection could act on groups as well as individuals--an idea known as group selection”(Schwartz). Group selection, which was based off of Darwin’s theory of natural selection, was the theory that an individual organism would sacrifice itself (seemingly selflessly) for the good of the entire population, hoping that its actions would save the group from annihilation and therefore allow for the continuation of the group’s gene flow into its descendants. Darwin explained that groups with members “ready to give aid to each other and sacrifice themselves for the com...
In his song “Amazing Grace”, John Newton uses parallelism, metaphor, simile, and imagery to compose a sensational song of appreciation for the undeserved kindness that he receives from God; he refers to the grace as “amazing”. In 1779, Newton, a slave trader now minister, had just survived a horrific storm at sea, and by virtue of his occupation, sees himself as someone in whom there is no good(trades in the suffering of other people) and who should have been consumed by that raging storm. In a state of hopelessness and trepidation, God shows up, rescues and restores him. Newton wonders why a holy God decides to rescue a sinner like himself. No wonder he says, “….that saved a wretch like me”. Newton cannot fathom why such an amazing grace
Helicopter parenting is a phenomenon that has taken the United States by storm! This style of parenting raises children to be dependent on their parents well into their mature years. Julia Lynthcott- Haims explains the four main factors that are responsible for this shift in parenting and childhood in the excerpt “The Four Cultural Shifts that Led to the Rise of the Helicopter Parent” in her book How to Raise an Adult. The “shifts” Haims proposes are juxtaposed with examples of how parenting has evolved to convey how the childrearing has transformed. The author attributes the helicopter phenomenon to four events that began in 1980s: child abductions becoming publicized, the idea that children were not doing enough schoolwork,
There is no doubt that the psalms are key to spirituality and take on a journey to true intimacy with God. In the book of psalms, the movement of the psalms portrays a life that is symmetrical and full of happiness to a life that has somehow ran itself into the ground. However, through God’s grace life is healed to a state of renewal where praises and thanksgiving are lifted up. These themes are common all throughout the Psalter. It is these themes that Walter Brueggemann refers to as periods of orientation, disorientation, and new orientation referred to above. It is these three themes that we must take in as one to fully experience the Psalter. For “the Psalms are not only addressed to God. They are a voice of the gospel, God’s good word for God’s faithful people” (pp. 2). Without the entire Psalter how can one manage to get the full aspect of the gospel. This is how the psalms become truly spiritual: orientation, disorientation, and new
...uman a relaxing feeling of happiness. This is also counted as a reward and the human isn’t consciously aware of it, but he is aware of it subconsciously and he might be doing it intentionally without being aware of it.
...t altruism cannot exists and if a reciprocal altruism appears it will later on change into egoism or it will be overtaken by the group’s leader, and his altruism or egoism.
In the story of young Goodman brown the Author of the story, Nathaniel Hawthorne, uses symbolic characters that represent life. In the story, Young Goodman Brown goes into a journey into the cold, dark, and lonely forest. Faith, his wife is rejected by young Goodman brown when she asks him to stay with her that night and to forget about the journey. Young Goodman Brown tells her that she will be all right without him and that he has to go into that journey. This is an image of what many people do, if not all people. We do not listen to our sin or to people who only wants the best for us, for example, our family. In Young Goodman Brown, Faith does not only resemble Young Goodman Brown’s religion, but it also resembles his support and security
Moved by faith in God, we commit ourselves to promote the healing that rises at one as well as the other private and environmental levels from integrated lives dedicated to serving God and humanity. Works Cited Keepers of the garden: Christians and the environment. by John T. Baldwin, Retrieved October 12, 2011. King James Bible, Retrieved, October, 13, 2011. www.mightystudents.com/essay/specific.actions.Christian..
According to the article, Altruism and helping behavior, it is common for people to help others. Altruism is defined as “the desire to help another person even if it doesn’t benefit the helper” (Altruism and Helping Behavior. Print.). Helping behavior is “any act that is intended to benefit another person”
One of the significant concepts in The Things They Carried is that of the importance of certain objects or feelings used by the soldiers of Alpha Company to survive the war. Some examples of these items are the picture of the girl carried by Jimmy Cross, the Bible carried by Kiowa, and the stockings carried by Henry Dobbins. All the items helped the respective soldier to survive from day to day and to continue fighting the war. One of the most important things that helped the soldiers is their friendship with each other. This bond that the soldiers form helped them to survive, excluded someone who was outside their group, and helped the men of Alpha Company to cope with the war after they returned to the United States.
Furthermore, there are many other reasons for the rise of helicopter parents. Back in the old days, people went through hardships. Now the parents who have seen the old era do not want their kids to have a rough time. So it becomes hard for the parents to watch their kids unprepared and miserable. They cannot help helping their kids in all the situations. Also, nowadays with growing number of successful people with their interesting success stories attract the attention of parents. Parents believe that ...