John Tyree : A Black Man Who Serves As A Soldier

Years after John Wade returned from Vietnam, he was still experiencing nightmares and horrible illusions about what had gone on. The war effected John deeply, but he came out the same John Wade underneath. He continued to cover up the truth, just as he had done years earlier with his mirror. John Wade's characteristics, the things that made him who he was, were the result of his childhood, adulthood and the war – rather than the war shaping him, it was life

John is a caring person. He is young so he is open to new ideas like the

In addition to giving his life to save the children, Johny is also a hero because he feels remorse for killing Bob and he decides to turn himself in. “.... “I killed a kid last night…. How'd you like to live with that?" ..."I didn't mean to," he finally blurted out, "but they were drownin' you, and I was so scared..."... "This is my fault," Johnny said in a miserable voice.” (74) “Johnny … but now he announced: 'We're goin' back and turn ourselves in."”

     There is a Motif in this book that pertains to Casualties in Vietnam. Through John we see the crippling effects of the War in Vietnam on citizens across America. We see his indecision for the direction of the rest of his life.

The story of African American soldiers in the American Civil War is often a forgotten one. The history of the war is usually presented as white Northerners versus white Southerners as blacks waited on the sidelines as their fate was determined. This portrayal is highly inaccurate considering over 180,000 African American troops fought in the war and eventually obtained their own regiments under the United States Colored Troops as a part of the Union Army. Composed on May, 22, 1863, the USCT strengthened the Union Army’s numbers and contributed significantly to battles such as the Skirmish at Island Mound and Fort Wagner. Even with their contributions, African American soldiers are often overlooked in favor of other narratives. However, black historian George Washington Williams was one of the first to write the history of black troops today. His belief was that the history of black troops and their valor were a major contribution to American Civil War history. While controversial at the time, this view is not uncommon today and historians have continued to study the significance of black troops. Gregory J. W. Urwin and other historians recently wrote a critique on the treatment of black soldiers, acknowledging atrocities against them were committed often. Urwin tries to provide a honest history to the brutality of the black solider.

On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves in the rebelling territories of the confederacy and authorizing Black enlistment in the Union Army. Since the beginning of the Civil War, free Black people in general, , were ready to fight on behalf of the Union, yet they were prevented from doing so. Popular racial stereotypes and discrimination against Blacks in the military contributed to the prevailing myth that Black men did not have the intelligence and bravery necessary to serve their country. By the fall of 1862, however, the lack of White Union enlistment and confederate victories at Antietem forced the U.S. government to reconsider its racist policy. As Congress met in

Once let the black man get upon his person the brass letter, U.S., let him get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on earth that can deny that he has earned the right to citizenship.

Fighting in the war was hard for Jonathan.He missed his family he missed his friends.Jonathan had been happy to go to war because every man in his family had fought in a war his older brother had fought right beside general Washington.His father did not want him to fight in a war but Jonathan did not listen he new what he wanted and that was to fight in a war.

John's life seemed to be one major drama after another; he didn't have a good male role model as a kid, and it seems he never was able to get on track. What was amazing about his life was the number of problems that he seemed to get into and how he wriggled out of them (with the help of a friendly person who just happened to meet him) only to run into more problems.

In the society described in the story John is shown to be different from the others in his civilization. Unlike others he is curious, willing to take risks, or even break rules. This was made apparent when John recalled when he went to the Dead Places, touched a piece of metal and did not die "(S)o he knew that I was truly his son and would be a priest in my time. That was when I was very young- nevertheless, my brothers would not have done it"(Benet 76). This quote directly shows one way that John is different and more daring than the rest of his brothers. John's more courageous attributes can be viewed as something extraordinary due to the fact that he discovered so much throughout the book. However this trait may also be looked

The Civil War, which began in April of 1861, was a war that most saw as ending by the end of the year – not one person expected it to turn into the long and drawn out slaughter that it became. It was a war that came about originally because of the secession of Southern states from the Union in the belief that the election of Abraham Lincoln to the Presidency would render emancipation inevitable. Only white soldiers fought against each other at the outset of war but by mid-July of 1862, Henry Wilson – a Senator from Massachusetts who strongly opposed slavery – had passed a bill that allowed the President to bring African-Americans into active service in the Union army and following the Emancipation Proclamation the President finally allowed

Many people believe that The Civil War is just history, but we are actually still fighting with the political and social issues that people at that time faced. Abraham Lincoln used The Emancipation Proclamation to free all slaves in confederate territory, yet thought “that the only solution [to end slavery] would be a constitutional amendment abolishing slavery.” (pg.368, The Americans) Therefore, the Thirteenth Amendment was born and although slavery has gotten better politically, there are still problems with equal rights and discrimination towards people of color. The stigma towards people of color is evident in the world currently, but also while broadening the topic, equal rights for all genders, races, religions, etc, still need improvement

The foundation for black participation in the Civil War began more than a hundred years before the outbreak of the war. Blacks in America had been in bondage since early colonial times. In 1776, when Jefferson proclaimed mankind 's inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, the institution of slavery had become firmly established in America. Blacks worked in the tobacco fields of Virginia, in the rice fields of South Carolina, and toiled in small farms and shops in the North. Foner and Mahoney report in A House Divided, America in the Age of Lincoln that, "In 1776, slaves composed forty percent of the population of the colonies from Maryland south to Georgia, but well below ten percent in the colonies to the

The major development seen in John’s character takes place near the end of the story, as he seeks a more pure life in a remote location. John feels as though he’s been poisoned by this new civilization “I ate civilization. It poisoned me; I was defiled. And then, I ate my own wickedness.” (241). He wants to not only live a noble life, but to make this life on his own, so chooses an abandoned lighthouse, far enough away from the disaster of a community he views Brave New World as a negative place with negative ideas. This is a major change from the identity he showed before being poisoned by this civilization, but once again he stays true to his values by leading this new life on his own. John’s strong moral values prove to be the one constant in his character.

George Lester Jackson was a Black Panther, left-wing activist, and also co-founded the Black Guerrilla Family. Born on September 23, 1941 in Chicago Illinois and son of a postal worker. His parents were Georgia and Lester Jackson they had five children and George Jackson was one of them. Georgia Jackson was very overprotective, rarely allowing her son to leave the house. Growing up in a segregated neighborhood, Jackson did not see a white person until he started kindergarten. He was so curious about the strange-looking children in his class that he approached the first white boy he saw and started feeling his straight hair and scratching the pale skin on his cheek. The boy responded by knocking Jackson out with a baseball bat. During the summers,