As more and more people become aware of the effects of war, they work to remove themselves from its cycles, and eventually they become peacemakers. These are the souls who struggle daily with the conflicts among those around them, and try to teach themselves and these others the habits of peace. Little by little the peacemakers chip away at the processes that perpetuate war, and build up the inner strength of the people weakened by it. Through the waging of peace, patriots come to realize that loyalty is to each other, one-on-one, among all of us, and not to some master or leader. Through the waging of peace, the threatened come to realize that the true threat is war itself, not the 'enemy'.
However, his greatest denial comes when he purposely tries to forget about Gene jouncing the limb and tells Gene “I don’t know, I must have just lost my balance” (Knowles 66). As wartime creeps closer, suddenly his fake reality must disappear. Phineas comes to admit to Gene that the war exists and confides to him that “I’ll hate it everywhere if I’m not in this war!” but if some organization would allow him to enlist despite being disabled, “Then there would have been a war” (Knowles 190). Later, Brinker and several other classmates hold a mock trial for the incident at the tree. During this trial, Phineas begins to grow more and more angry as his classmates force him to admit to himself that Gene meant to jostle the
Just as Martin L. King Jr. protested against the racial injustices years ago and non violently protested, students are finding other ways to stand up for what they believe in and what should be fair treatment for all. Protests of this one action have caused a feeling of despair and wonder for the country because it has brought us all apart and makes family and friends hate each other instead of enjoying each other. Once the racial discrimination and social injustices end in high schools and all around, our country might actually be able to become one and the protests will be able to stop. That will make everyone happy and we can continue to grow together as a community, country, and
But I would not say he devalues his family he just has a harder time talking to them due to the war, so his mind is trapped on war still. Thus, making his family his out-group. Another one would be the war between them and the middle eastern people, they would be an example of an outgroup in a negative way, making the movie has two types of out groups. The Navy, his family,
As Herbert Hoover eloquently put it, “Older men declare war. But it is the youth that must fight and die.” War has no mercy. It takes homes, tears families apart, and steals childhoods from innocent people. Such is the case in A Separate Peace, by John Knowles. While people of seniority make all the impactful decisions that have to do with the war, the young boys of Devon School are forced to accept the realities of war and join the fight.
He had been sure war would supply him with “the great, the overwhelming, and the hallowed experience” (Jünger, p. 5). However, the shelling made Jünger realize that war was going to be violent and not at all what he had originally expected. War was not going to be cozy, but instead a violent clawing beast. The shelling came as a shock to Jünger and his fellow soldiers because they realized how impersonal the war could be. He compares his realization with a ghost appearing in broad daylight, which is an unusual situation.
The Ghosts of War During his time as a lieutenant in World War 1 (WWI), Wilfred Owen wrote many poems revolving around the reality of war, usually focusing on the perspective of the war that many did not discuss due to a sense of nationalism. Specifically, Owen elaborates upon the bravery of these young men, the conditions they endured, and the pieces of their souls that remain. In his poems “Dulce et Decorum Est,” “Mental Cases,” and “Smile, Smile, Smile,” Wilfred Owen characterizes World War I soldiers as courageous, yet damaged, heroes in order to reveal the gruesome reality of war. In “Dulce et Decorum Est” and “Smile, Smile, Smile,” Owen criticizes the propaganda that brought English youth to either death or trauma. In “Dulce,” Owen
In the chapter “On the Rainy River”, pride drives O’Brien to make a decision that will change his life forever. He is deciding between fleeing to Canada or accepting the fact that he was drafted for Vietnam and go to war. He decided to go to the border of the United States and Canada, staying with a man named Elroy. Elroy becomes a silent stigma in Tim’s life, and his cabin helps Tim realize he has to go to war because there is too much pride in his heart not to. He explains, “I would go to war--I would kill and maybe die--because I was too embarrassed not to” (O’Brien 57).
Wilfred Owen, most famous for his war poetry, used his work to expose the horrors of war and the disastrous results that come from it, as seen in his most famous pieces – ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’,’ Anthem for Doomed Youth’ and ‘Exposure’. Owen’s preface states, “Above all I am not concerned with poetry”. This means it is not the poetry alone that is important to Owen, but the message he is trying to portray and emphasise. Owen more than anything wanted to reveal the truths of war hidden behind false propaganda and was able to achieve this though his poetic capabilities. Owen through his poetry was able to captivate his reader and create visual imagery to heighten the messages he wanted to convey, allowing us comprehend and understand the true horrors occurring on the front.
He also finds peace by fighting his own private war growing up. Alton states,” In the end , inner peace is achieved only after fighting one’s own, private war growing up. In this sense the war is symbolic also of inner struggle from adolescence to maturity”. Gene acknowledges that his real enemy is himself and that he caused all his vicious acts because of his envy, hatred, and fear of growing up. After fifteen years, Gene realizes that the problem was not Finny but himself, and he discovers his peace and happiness now that he has fought his war.