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Mental and physical consequences of war for soldiers
Trench warfare in world war 1 compared to world war 2
Mental and physical consequences of war for soldiers
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In the time era of world war 1, technology was beginning to advance. The soldiers in the war were deprived of these extensive resources, causing them complications while serving their countries. At nineteen, protagonist Robert Ross experiences trench warfare. As technology advances the soldiers begin to feel the physical, mental and spiritual impact of the insufficient resources. IN The Wars, Findley ultimately shows these detrimental affects, disfiguring Roberts overall well being as a Canadian solider.
When an individual looks at war they often think of physicality. Yet if soldiers have insufficient resources, these physical challenges they must face, become or seem almost impossible. Through Roberts time as a soldier, he encounters a barbarous gas attack. Robert solicits the men to take out their handkerchiefs if they want to live: “we’ve got no handkerchiefs” […] (124). The men have no gas masks, nor did they have handkerchiefs to give themselves an alternative solution. Therefore, Robert advocates
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With a lack of protection for soldier’s men were taken advantage of. Without being around women or men in some cases for long periods of times, men became sexually deprived. Robert has morals and values and they were diminished when he was raped by three of his fellow soldiers: “Robert felt a tug- very light at first- at the end of his towel. He pulled back and the pressure at the other end increased” (173). For Robert Ross he thought his troops were his friends, and he could finally be able to trust others. Everything Robert thought he knew about of his fellow soldiers was gone. With not knowing who to trust, Robert had to find himself. There was no one left to help him. Soldiers had to find there own means of protection, and the reader sees this when after the rape Robert clings to his pistol. The lack of protection plays on the soldier’s spirituality and ultimately destroys everything they know and
War has been a constant part of human history. It has greatly affected the lives of people around the world. These effects, however, are extremely detrimental. Soldiers must shoulder extreme stress on the battlefield. Those that cannot mentally overcome these challenges may develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Sadly, some resort to suicide to escape their insecurities. Soldiers, however, are not the only ones affected by wars; family members also experience mental hardships when their loved ones are sent to war. Timothy Findley accurately portrays the detrimental effects wars have on individuals in his masterpiece The Wars.
The title of this novel, “The Wars” is illusory. Upon first glance, it makes one expect a protagonist who goes to an actual war, uses physical strength to fight on the battlefield and becomes a war hero.While part of that is true, there are also other significances of the war associated with this title. This novel recounts the journey of the protagonist, Robert Ross as he starts out as a shy, introvert and an inexperienced person before he goes to war; he experiences a change in himself as a result of the people and the battle(s) that he fights with the factors in his surroundings. Therefore, “The Wars” doesn’t necessarily mean the war with the enemy but it includes the wars at home, wars against nature and wars of relationships. Which
was useful for firing over the top as you could rest your gun on it.
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).
Robert Ross’ is introduced to characters with varying outlooks on the world, based on their own social and economic backgrounds. The soldiers around Robert Ross differ greatly,...
Through The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien moves beyond the horror of fighting in the Vietnam War to examine with sensitivity and insight the nature of courage and fear. Included, is a collection of interrelated stories. A few of the stories are brutal, while others are flawed, blurring the distinction between fact and fiction. All the stories, however, deal with one platoon. Some are about the wartime experiences of soldiers, and others are about a 43-year-old writer reminiscing about his platoon’s experiences. In the beginning chapter, O’Brien rambles about the items the soldiers carry into battle, ranging from can openers, pocketknives, and mosquito repellent o Kool-Aid, sewing kits, and M-16 assault rifles. Yet, the story is truly about the intangible things the soldiers “carry”: “grief, terror, love, longing… shameful memories (and) the common secret of cowardice” (Harris & O’Brien 21).
However, in Robert’s case, he felt neglected by his family, and sought refuge in the war as a way of escaping his family and the death of his sister.
The weights of desires, fears, and responsibility place great amounts of pressure on an individual. The soldiers in “The Things They Carried” all around lug a great deal of heavy weaponry and equipment. But the heaviest items are intangible things such as their emotions, shame and reputations. These intangible items cannot be discarded and thus, the men continue to “hump” by enduring their weight for the remainder of their lives. Lieutenant Cross realizes that the men “carry these things inside, maintaining a mask of composure” (369) and that unfortunately, the only way to release these things is death.
Trench Warfare World War 1 is perhaps best known for being a war fought in trenches, ditches dug out of the ground to give troops protection from enemy artillery and machine-gun fire. The trenches spread from the East to the West. By the end of 1914, trenches stretched all along the 475 mile front between the Swiss border and the Channel coast. The trench system on the Western Front consisted of front-line, support and reserve trenches. Three rows of trenches covered between 200 and 500 yards of ground.
One of the worst things about war is the severity of carnage that it bestows upon mankind. Men are killed by the millions in the worst ways imaginable. Bodies are blown apart, limbs are cracked and torn and flesh is melted away from the bone. Dying eyes watch as internal organs are spilled of empty cavities, naked torso are hung in trees and men are forced to run on stumps when their feet are blown off. Along with the horrific deaths that accompany war, the injuries often outnumber dead men. As Paul Baumer witnessed in the hospital, the injuries were terrifying and often led to death. His turmoil is expressed in the lines, “Day after day goes by with pain and fear, groans and death gurgles. Even the death room I no use anymore; it is too small.” The men who make it through the war take with them mental and physical scarification from their experiences.
In his short story, “The Things They Carried,” Tim O’Brien demonstrates the depressing change of a soldier from imaginative boy to impersonal man, adolescent to adult, and lover to leader. The terrible burdens pile so high on the young men that “certainly they would never be at a loss for things to carry.” The harsh reality of the world tremendously affects Cross and forever changes him. Through this transition, O’Brien reveals the strict and dismal standards which culture upholds for men to be firm and unwavering.
In the novel The Wars, Robert Ross is a sensitive nineteen year old boy who experiences first-hand the horrors of battle as a Canadian Soldier in the First World War in hopes of trying to find who he is. Being named a Lieutenant shortly after arriving in Europe, Robert is thrust into combat. War has been a constant part of human history. It has greatly affected the lives of people around the world. These effects, however, are extremely detrimental. Soldiers must shoulder extreme stress on the battlefield. Those that cannot mentally overcome these challenges may develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Timothy Findley shows the effects wars have on individuals in his novel The Wars. Findley suggests that war can change a persons behaviour in many different ways, however it is seen to be negatively more often then not. Robert Ross, the main character of The Wars, shows symptoms of what is known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in today’s society.
When one thinks of war they think of one side attacking the other, but in this war we spend much of our time in damp, muddy trenches, which smell of sewage and rotting corpses. The sun is high so we all lay low in the trenches to avoid sniper fire. So I sit and rest enjoying the break, using the time to clean my bolt-action rifle. My fellow brothers-in-arms are busy taking care of everyday tasks such as personal hygiene or writing letters home.
In World War One the soldiers were not taken care of very well and were made to live in very horrible conditions. In Dulce et Decorum Est Wilfred Owen shows the problems of war through the mustard gas. They all “[fit] the clumsy helmets just in time” except for one soldier who starts to drown in his own fluids. He starts choking and lunging at the other men, but nothing can be done to help him. He is then flung onto a cart and shipped away. There are many problems with this. Not only is there the emotional toll of losing a friend, but also the constant torturing fear that t...
... could not help themselves, they were not going to be helped. If struggle were encountered, men had personalized ways to reconnect with the real world, and if a tragedy were encountered which affected the entire company, they also found a combined way to cope with this pressure. The priorities of men during the war shifted greatly toward emotional connections to people and events other than the war, and it was these connections that helped them survive and return home. Coping with the stress and burden of war is not an easy task for anyone, yet in The Things they Carried, O'Brien depicts men dealing and coping as much as they can, using only their primeval resources. They learn how to cope with the barest necessities in life, and they learn how to make use of the smallest opportunities to obtain the most relief and joy from every moment in life.