The war can be seen in many different aspects, sometimes good most times not so good. The war past, present and future can be a hard topic for most. War novels, writing about the war, or even talking about the war can be very difficult for most people to talk and share their experiences. People are affected by the war in many different ways, and tend to deal with the affects differently. The effects on war not only affects the person who experienced the war hands on but also the people around them also. In my paper I will be going over two novels, comparing the way that these two authors presented and remembered their war experiences. The two novels that we have just read, were Goodbye, Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War by William Manchester …show more content…
Such as in Goodbye Darkness there were sometimes where Manchester brought humor or was not all serious such as when he talked about sex and his virginity. In Slaughterhouse 5, even though it is seen as a fantasy novel there are parts in this novel that displays facts and Vonnegut’s memoir. He talks about all the dreadful things that he had experience and how much of a tragedy the bombing of Dresden was. Even though Goodbye darkness is seen as a dark memoir and Slaughterhouse 5 is seen as a science-fiction novel both authors founds their own ways in dealing with the war. The war affected them in different ways causing them to have post-traumatic stress disorder which affects a lot of soldiers and being able to explain their experiences through different views can also open up different views for others. I think Billy 's way of coping with his experience was seen through time traveling and aliens encounter, which you could say has affected him psychologically. For Manchester his flashbacks were nightmares of the war and that is why his novel was the way it was. These two novels displays the war differently which people will remember the war differently. Like I said soldiers remembers their experience differently which affects the ways these novels are
This book taught me everything I now know about war. This book taught me that war was constant, it didn 't stop whenever. If you needed a break, it didn 't matter, it was continuous fighting. You were constantly fighting for your life while defending your country. This book taught me about the amount of death an pod injuries that occurred everyday.
Between the danger of firefights, the suspense of night raids, and the explosions of mortar strikes soldiers experience many near-death experiences. These experiences, however, give soldiers an irreplaceable rush of adrenaline and endorphins. Throughout the novel “The Things They Carried,” Tim O’Brien uses many different stories from his friends and his time fighting in Vietnam to illustrate the ups and downs of war and the effect it has on those involved. Through the use of different perspectives, he is able to give the full Vietnam experience ranging from the fun with group members to witnessing the death of a close friend. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien illustrates how war can give soldiers a feeling of belonging, camaraderie, and
Yet, the people affected by PTSD still persevere and have hope that they will overcome their difficulties. Kurt Vonnegut uses Billy Pilgrim from Slaughterhouse-Five to show how heavily war can affect people. Billy battles with depression, and this can be seen throughout the novel when he cries for seemingly no reason. That is because he is struggling with PTSD. Under orders
In the face of adversity, when life's traumatic circumstances persist, individuals are often left with the burden of many psychological wounds. The trauma left on a person's psyche can make it very difficult to cope with and as a result, they distance themselves from the unpleasantness of the situation through the use of defense mechanisms. Various forms of literature contain characters that exhibit numerous defense mechanisms. In doing so, it enables the readers to utilize the psychoanalytic critical theory lens to depict the elements that encompass said character's personality. One example of this, is the book Slaughterhouse-Five written by Kurt Vonnegut whereby the protagonist, Billy Pilgrim, is subjected to the incomprehensible horrors
Slaughterhouse-Five Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children's Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death, is a satirical postmodern novel published by Kurt Vonnegut in 1969. By following the events of the fire bombing of Dresden in the Second World War and intertwining the war narrative with absurdist elements of science fiction, Vonnegut weaves together a novel that explores themes of free will versus inevitability and presents the unequivocally destructive nature of war, all while maintaining a mockingly serious tone that targets the senselessness of war and the inner darkness and brutality of human nature. Though the title of the novel is often shortened to "Slaughterhouse-Five" for simplicity and practicality, each piece of the full three-part title functions to further Vonnegut's message about the evil of war, the focal point of the novel.
The Lasting Effect of War It is impossible to undo the changes caused by war. People often go into war as one person and return a completely new one. Not only does war have extreme physical effects on a person, but greater effects on the mind and mental state of the people involved. The traumatic and life changing effects of war are evident in The Things They Carried and are especially noticeable in the characters of Mary Anne Bell, Tim O’Brien, and Rat Kiley and the lives they live.
Firstly, both of the authors’ stories end with the protagonists surviving the war, but making them feel regretful and unworthy of living. O’Brien survives after being a soldier during the
And not many words come now, either”. Obviously the events and experiences in Dresden had a profound effect on Vonnegut, so much so that it was too difficult for him to write a book about it from his own perspective, instead writing about a fictional man called Billy Pilgrim. Speaking through this character in Slaughterhouse-5, Vonnegut explains, “Ever since the war, Billy’s whole life had been tainted. He could not think of a happy memory, without at some point thinking of the war. His whole past had been ruined.
War is nasty; war is fun. War is thrilling; war is drudgery. War makes you a man; war makes you dead." (pg. 80). The effect of war on each soldier who fought in it was different and unique, and as a result, each soldier's experience with war has a different effect.
War and its affinities have various emotional effects on different individuals, whether facing adversity within the war or when experiencing the psychological aftermath. Some people cave under the pressure when put in a situation where there is minimal hope or optimism. Two characters that experience
"Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt. "(Vonnegut 122). Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut is a rather strange book that recounts the life and happenings of Billy Pilgrim, a veteran of WWII, and an optometrist. It contains war, bombings, syrup, bullies, and human zoos on alien planets. The quote at the beginning is what Billy Pilgrim wanted to be on his headstone, even though he was part of one of the worst air-raids in all of war.
Do you ever wonder the way you would react after returning home from the war? Would you be the same person you were when you left, would your outlook on life completely be changed, would life as you once remembered it be the same? In Ernest Hemmingway’s story Soldier’s Home he effectively develops the theme of war changing people. By character, relationships and a lack of drive.
But when Billy has a nervous breakdown in the veterans’ hospital, Valencia ignores it, asking if Billy wants “‘to talk about… silver pattern’” (111). Valencia was supposed to be taking care of Billy people, but ignored his discussions about war and his interest in Kilgore Trout. Valencia appeared indifferent, perhaps uncomfortable, talking about the war with her fiancee and decided against it, providing the opposite of comfortability to
Technological Advancements in Warfare and their Effects on Mental Health Humans are extremely social creatures. People have an unparalleled capacity to empathize and recognize the emotions of others. However, extreme trauma can severely compromise this ability, particularly trauma inflicted by warfare. As a result of his first hand experience with the government 's use of technology in warfare, Billy Pilgrim of Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five loses his ability to control his social interactions, becoming apathetic and disconnected with the world around him, a phenomenon not uncommon amongst those who have seen the immediate devastation of modern warfare technology.
Slaughterhouse-Five examines the similarities with Vonnegut and Norman Mailer making himself a character in The Armies of the Night, Vonnegut used his own real-life experience in surviving the Dresden bombing to establish authorial legitimacy. Like Mailer, also Vonnegut discusses the reasons why he was writing this book and the difficulties he encounter remembering war experiences. When Vonnegut appears as