Mistakes In Tim O Brien's The Red Badge Of Courage

Elizabeth criticizes the Imagery and Characterization of Passos “Three Soldiers”. She feels that in the novel he does not provide enough details and insight into how the soldiers are feeling. He states that the soldiers hate the war but never says why. I do agree with the criticism because he does not really explain a lot about how or why they hate the war and it makes it harder for the audience to get the full effect of the book. “It’s almost worth having been in the army for the joy your freedom gives you” (Passos).

He has chosen to title his essay “Losing the War.” This however is not originally the title. The longer title is as follows; “World War II had faded into movies, anecdotes, and archives that nobody cares about anymore. Are we losing the war?” Albeit subtle subtle, this is perhaps one of the most powerful choices Sandlin made in his argument. He is suggesting that although the war is considered “won” in the history books, the trauma it caused —as the general nature of the war— is anything but victorious. He is also arguing that the American public is, actually, losing the war.

In the novel The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien expresses to the reader why the men went to the war and continued to fight it. In the first chapter, “The Things They Carried,” O’Brien states “It was not courage, exactly; the object was not valor. Rather they were too frightened to be cowards.” The soldiers went to war not because they were courageous and ready to fight, but because they felt the need to go. They were afraid and coped with their lack of courage by telling stories (to themselves or aloud) and applied humor to the situations they encountered. The men who served in the Vietnam War were just barely men, some of them were just hitting the age twenty.

The Moral of the Story War is never poetic, however, Wilfred Owen England, author of Dulce Et Decorum Est, brings to life an experience he had at war. Although the language is gory and he refrained from niceties, the story he tells is vivid and makes you feel that you are there at the moment experiencing it with him. Makes one wonder why the title, which in translation means “It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country”, is chosen when he experienced so much death around him. On the other hand, author Tim O’Brien begins to tell the story as though it is coming from a second party and gives it philosophical twist here and there, which creates an interesting telltale version of stories in How to Tell a True War Story. The story being told by Wilfred Owen sounds is more believable as he states it experiencing it firsthand.

Courageous acts described in the book, do not fit the general description of the courage author gives in the chapter “On the Rainy River”. While in that chapter author made it seem like running away was courageous, and going to war was cowardly, in other chapters we see that it is exactly the opposite. Whether O’Brien did that deliberately or not is another thing. But, the fact is that O’Brien contradicts himself in describing cowardice and courage, making these two inconsistent notions represent the same

This poem describes the soldiers personal perspectives of war using the bare naked truth, not glorifying it in anyway. The purpose of ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ is to not embellish the truth of war, but to show how tragic and useless it is. ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ hints that it is “sweet and honourable” to be at war, encouraging soldiers to go, however, as the reader begins to read they find out that Owen is truly against war. Owen shows that the soldiers are ruined, both mentally and physically. Wilfred Owen’s poem ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ structure hints to the uncertainty of war.

Refusal to yield due to pride is a human weakness evident in both the ancient times and today's society. In Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, King Oedipus refuses to yield when Tiresias urges him that “there’s no help in the truth” (Sophocles 17). Since Oedipus is too proud and stubborn to believe Tiresias, he ignores Tiresias’ advice and unfolds the truth concerning his own past and King Laius’ death, thinking that he will save Thebes from the plague, but ends up only harming himself and his loved ones. Like Oedipus, Muhammad Ali, a professional boxer, is also proud of his beliefs and refuses to yield and join the U.S. military when drafted during the Vietnam War, despite the criticism and punishment he receives. Ali stated that his “ ‘conscience [won't]

The patriarchy also proves damaging and oppressive for individuals such as Roy. While Roy is far from a sympathetic character as he is abusive and controlling of Jack, it should be acknowledged that war veterans, especially in the 1950’s, were not given the social or medical support needed. Jack perceives Roy as “what a man should be” and sees him as stoic and strong, “He’d been to war and kept a kind of silence about it that was full of heroic implication.” The ideal that a man should be detached, unemotional, and violent lest he be seen as effeminate or weak comes from the idea that men need to be the providers and the powerful, something which is incredibly damaging to men, especially those who have been affected by the trauma of war. It

“ Mistakes made by a foolish mind, cruel mistakes that bring on death.” (1406 to 1407.) In this quote, King Creon of Thebes is acknowledging that he has made tragic mistakes, because he wanted to the laws of his state, that he put in place, instead of preserving the safety of his family, which consequently lead to suffering for many. In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, the character Creon makes decisions based on what he feels is right, and refuses to pay attention to other’s advice. His stubbornness and selfishness prove fatal, and as a consequence of his moral deficiency, he kills an innocent woman, and loses his son in the aftermath. In the play Antigone, by Sophocles, Creon’s deadly stubbornness and selfishness in ignoring the pleas and

In turn this also makes the public understand that there is nothing glorious about war in any way. It is exhausting, inhumane and brutal and therefore anyone who glorifies war should be criticised. In conclusion the poem Dulce et Decorum est written by Wilfred Owen is about the harsh brutalities of war, which should never be encouraged to be deemed as a great and glorious act by anyone. Which is what Owen was trying to get across to the public, which was reinforced through three language features, similes, onomatopoeia and negative connotative language. Even after 100 years, we can’t help but feel the pain and suffering for these brave men, who risked their lives for the love of others and their