Robert Ross the Anti-Hero

Timothy Findley's The Wars describes the history of Robert Ross, a Second Lieutenant in the Canadian Army, during World War 1. The story of Robert Ross is a candid recollection of a young man coming of age in the midst of horror and confusion associated with the "war to end all wars". Presented in the form of an archivist trying to piece together the past from pictures and letters, the narrative account is full of rich imagery and deep meaning. The abundant animal imagery in the novel is used to parallel and reveal the character of Robert Ross, foreshadow the situations he finds himself in, and symbolize hope amidst war.

His mom didn’t really want Robert at first and Vincent was very, very supportive about whether she wanted to bring Robert home or not. She said no until one night, when Mary and Vincent went home to their other children, Micheal, Gary, Paula, and Catherine and asked what they thought about bringing hime. All of Robert’s soon-to-be siblings said yes. While at first, Vincent and Mary were a little weirded out at first, their love for Robert grew stronger and stronger. Especially his mom’s, her love grew fast and fierce. His parents got over their “weird” feeling, they decided to take Robert out in the real world without getting

Coates devoted so much time telling Clyde Ross story is because Ross story was a background for the reader to understands Coates points. An example was when Coates was telling us when Ross bought his first house in Chicago in the city of North Lawndale, he did not sign a normal mortgage but instead signed a contract. If Ross does not pay on time he would lose his $1,000 down payment and also his property. In one part of his article Coates said that the speculators would use “block-busting”, a method to spook the whites into selling their house for a cheap price before it turns into a black neighborhood. They would sell those houses to the people (African American) who are trying to escape the ghetto and they would sell them on a contract.

     Many times throughout Robert’s life, all those whom he thought were close to him, while he tried stick to his ideals, had betrayed him. When Robert lost Rowena, he felt that he had failed at his duty and he feels he must make up for it by joining the army.

The abundant animal imagery in Timothy Findley's book The Wars is used to develop characterization and theme. The protagonist, Robert Ross, has a deep connection with animals that reflects his personality and the situations that he faces. This link between Robert and the animals shows the reader that human nature is not much different than animal nature.

Robert Ross, the protagonist of Timothy Findley’s novel The Wars undergoes a disturbing violation when his fellow soldiers rape him; this is a significant turning point for Robert’s character and a section of the book Findley uses to address many themes. Throughout the book we witness Robert maturing and experiencing many hardships that will help create the man he becomes. The most significant of these trials is the scene at the insane asylum because it is where Robert looses the last connection to his innocence and his faith in humanity’s virtuousness. Findley also uses this scene to address the topic of homophobia in that era, and

Parallels are drawn between the protagonist, Robert Ross, and many of the animals that appear throughout the novel. Robert appears to have a strong kinship with his animal counterparts. After enlisting in the army, Robert takes a run out on the prairie, where he encounters a coyote. He instinctively begins to follow the creature, and it leads him to a valley where it stops to drink at a small pond. As it drinks, "the sound . . . [crosses] the distance between them and . . . [seems] to satisfy his own thirst" (The Wars 28). Before the coyote leaves, it turns and "[looks] directly at him . . . and [barks] . . .The coyote had known he was there the whole time: maybe the whole of the run across the prairie. Now it was telling Robert that the valley was vacant: safe-and Robert could proceed to the water's edge and drink" (28). Later that night, as he sits alone, Robert finds himself "wishing that someone would howl" (28). Robert also seems to have a special bond with birds, which often appear in the novel, frequently at times of crisis for Robert. After unwittingly leading his men through the fog onto a collapsing dike, the air is suddenly "filled with the shock waves of wings . . . [and] the sound of their motion [sends] a shiver down Robert's back" (81). Subsequently, Robert steps into the sinking mud and is nearly sucked down to his death beneath the earth. Later in the novel, Robert again encounters a bird, and it is at the same

“The journey of the hero is about the courage to seek the depths; the image of creative rebirth; the eternal cycle of change within us…The hero journey is a symbol that binds …. (Phil Cousineau).” Mattie Ross learns this in True Grit, by Charles Portis, when she experiences the death of her father. She says, ”…Tom Chaney shot my father down in Fort Smith, Arkansas and robbed him of his life and his horses and $150 in cash money plus two California gold pieces that he carried in his trouser band(11)”. Frank Ross, Matties’ father, who was shot to death, by a man named, Tom Chaney. Mattie Ross is just 14 years old in the 1870’s, she states, “Nothing is free in this world except the grace of god, you must pay for everything.(pg?)” Personal

"His assailants, who he'd thought were crazies, had been his fellow soldiers. Maybe even his brother officers. He'd never know. He never saw their faces." (Findley, P 193) This is just one of the many examples which make the reader feel sorry for Robert Ross. Because the reader feels sorrow, there is more chance that the reader believes everything that is being said by or about him, although there is more that one perspective to the whole of World War I.

Despite the fact that the German has let the rest of the soldiers escape unharmed, Robert’s innate violence triggers the death of an innocent soldier. Thus, Robert’s actions reveal the inherent savage nature of humankind.

All things truly wicked start from innocence. A moral truth that finds its place among today’s society. Innocence is such a frail, yet valuable quality. The loss of innocence can lead to such disastrous consequences. The theme of the loss of innocence is a prevalent one found throughout the novel The Wars by Timothy Findley. It is noted particularly in regards to the protagonist, Robert Ross. Early on in the novel, he encounters such miserable situations that dramatically mature his character emotionally and mentally in such a short period of time. Such events include the sudden loss of a loved one, sexual encounters, and the murder of the

Robert Ross is a sensitive, private boy; last person you would expect to sign up to fight in World War One. In The Wars by Timothy Findley, symbols are used in conjunction with Ross’ story to cause readers to reflect on symbols in their own lives, and to allow then to dive deeper into the world of an innocent boy who is placed into a cruel war. The various symbols in The Wars provide for a graphic and reflective reading experience by emphasizing Robert’s connection with nature, his past, and his experiences during the war.

First, the main character, Robert Ross, was an innocent child at the beginning of the novel. He loved his sister, Rowena, and felt guilty not being able to save her. He then decided to enlist the army because he wanted to protect innocents in order to redeem himself to the death of Rowena. He got beaten up the night before he enlisted the army, “That night, Robert was lying in the bathtub, smoothing his aches and bruises with water…”(23). If he was in the army, he would have to fight people much stronger than Teddy Budge. Robert would not be able to fight them since the fight between him and Teddy was one sided already. However, Robert was only thinking about how he could redeem himself, but not his own capability to be a soldier. This showed how naive Robert was, he didn’t see the danger he was stepping into. Also, when Mrs Ross told

‘No one in the novel can actually be seen as a hero.’ To what extent do you agree?

Once Robert is back in the battle, there is another, worse attack on the Canadian lines by the Germans. They are being rained on by shells, and Robert fears for the lives of the horses in a nearby barn that is being hit by the shelling, and which Robert fears will collapse at any moment. Over the course of the war, Robert has grown more and more attached to horses, and it’s in his benevolent nature to care for other animals. When Robert tells Captain Leather that he will go back to the barn to save the horses, Leather refuses, saying that it is not necessary. Robert, thinking back to the last time he wanted to go against Captain Leather’s orders, and what arose when he didn’t, realizes that he must go against his orders and free the horses. As Robert is running back to the barn to free the horses, Leather screams at him to stop what he is doing and to follow his orders, but Robert is determined. When Leather pulls his gun on Robert, Robert stops to shoot him, killing Leather. In this time, the barn has been hit by a shell, and is burning, but Robert still runs inside to try to save the horses moments before the roof of the barn collapses on Robert, burning him