The Perils Of War In Forge By Laurie Halse Anderson

In the war for the American independence, the life of a continental soldier was very rough as depicted in the book by Martin. Some of the soldiers of the army served relatively only a short

One thing in the story that shocked me is how different our perception of the Revolutionary War is from the reality. An example of this was how ill trained the American army was at the beginning of the war. The army was undisciplined, disobedient, and motivated only by their paychecks. Many perceive the soldiers as valiant, zealous men, but it wasn’t until much later in the war that the soldiers rose to the occasion and became the warriors that we remember today.

The American Revolution, when 13 American colonies waged war against the most powerful country in the world, Great Britain, for their independence. Soldiers who fought in the war and risked their lives to gain the freedom we have today, is just one of the many prime examples of prevailing hardships in battle. George Washington proved to be exemplary just like many others heroic patriots, like Henry Knox and Nathaniel Greene, when triumphing over the British soldiers with what little strength they had and defeating them. Their victory was more than enough proof on why they deserved independence. David McCullough’s 1776, describes and educates us about events which happened before the war and foreshadows up to the revolution. We learn about the hardships thrown at George Washington and the Continental army whose intentions switched from equal rights to complete emancipation. Battles throughout the Revolutionary War, like the Battle of Bunker Hill, are well known, but McCullough shows the reader how the Continental army continues to strive on even when victory is not in their favor.

Johnny Tremain,” by Esther Forbes is a book about a boy that lived before and during the Revolutionary War. In this book, Johnny Tremain experienced many things as a boy, apprentice, a silversmith, a messenger, and a revolutionary. While Johnny was getting older and time past by, Johnny experienced love, changing, and betrayal in many ways. Johnny changes during the story, as well as experience love and betrayal right in front of him. Although Johnny went through many hardships, he was still able to overcome the obstacles that came to him. After reading “Johnny Tremain,” Johnny never gave up, and people should never give up just because there is a barrier ahead of us. “Johnny Tremain” has many historical figures that allow the reader to know

I feel like Americans typically perceive the story of Valley Forge as a battle. Attacks never came from the British during the time the Continental Army was at the encampment. They believe that tons of lives were lost there, when in reality, it was just a place for them to make it through the winter. I think the book reinforces the perceptions of what happened there since, “There was between fifteen hundred and three thousand men that died at Valley Forge, not from their wounds, but from disease” (119). This statement reinforces the fact that no

James M. McPherson sets out to discover what motivated the Confederate and Union soldiers to continue fighting in the Civil War in his book What They Fought For. McPherson analyses nearly a thousand letters, journals, and diary of Union and Confederate soldiers to determine what urged them to fight is this defining American Conflict. McPherson reads and groups together the common thoughts of the everyday soldier, from their letters and journals that none of which had been subjected to any sort of censorship, in that time period. He then generalizes the motivations that they used to fight for their country. Whether it be for slavery or for the Union, the author views both sides of the fighting to analysis their ideological issues, how deep their belief coursed through their veins to continue fighting, and how the soldiers held their convictions close to heart in the time of war.

Tim Meeker concludes the epilogue with,” But somehow, even fifty years later, I keep thinking that there might have been another way, besides war, to achieve the same end” (Collier and Collier 211). Fifty years after the war, Meeker reflects on his life during the Revolutionary War with Britain and the American colonies. He has been torn between the sides of war, fought with family, experienced deaths of loved ones, and other conflicts the war has brought him. Authors James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier express Meeker’s troubles and thoughts along with lessons that the war has taught him. Tim learned from the way war affected him that war is futile.

Throughout Forced Founders: Indians, Debtors, Slaves, and the Making of the American Revolution in Virginia, Woody Holton argues that the causes of the Revolutionary War are different than what most people once concluded. Although many American's believe that George Washington and Thomas Jefferson are the men who led this revolution, Holton brings up a new theory on how the war began. As Holton's title states, he believes that Indians, debtors, and slaves had a bigger role in the making of the American Revolution. Throughout the entire novel, Holton argues that the American Revolution is not led by the elite men of Virginia, but the nonessential people are those who play the biggest roles in the making of this war.

In his book 1776, David McCullough animates the events and people who fought for American freedom in a new light, bridging a gap between the past and the present. The events described in the novel encompasses the beginnings of the American Revolution during the year of the Declaration of Independence and, instead of putting the main focus on certain events or battles, McCullough emphasizes how the people involved may have felt throughout hardships, triumphs, and loss. In 1776 we see historical figures represented in a way never seen before, including their emotional reactions to events as well as their character, which is shown more and more as the book progresses. Events are evidently chronological, mostly in the year of 1776, and the

David McCullough’s novel 1776 is a compelling story of America’s war for independence. We have all read chapters and heard the related history of the war of 1776, but David McCullough takes the epic story even further. The book covers the entire year of 1776 from the beginning of the war until the end. The author provides an extremely detailed description of both sides of the conflict both American and British. David McCullough is a renowned author and historian and has twice won the Pulitzer Prize for two of his novels; John Adams and Truman, and with reading 1776 you can see exactly why he is so celebrated. His

David McCullough author of 1776 puts faces and feelings to the events of the Revolutionary war making this an exciting novel even when the ending is known. Acting as a companion to an earlier work of McCullough’s, John Adams, 1776 is a strictly military view of the era versus political. Although the reader may have to get accustomed to the vast amount of characters introduced McCullough makes sure that those you are supposed to remember you will. Every character introduced is described incredibly well and throughout the novel you begin to feel as if you know the character and are going through the battle with them, specifically General George Washington with whom the reader emphasizes constantly with throughout the war.

In the story Forge, written by Laurie Halse Anderson, the main character is Curzon Smith. The main setting took place at Valley Forge. The book Forge is a continuation of the bestselling award-winning novel Chains. The beginning picks up where it left off, Curzon and Isabel had escaped there slave life. There journey was to begin a new life but, after an argument that Curzon and Isabel had in May, she ran away taking all the money and her belongings leaving Curzon to himself. This made matters worse for him, no food, no shelter, most importantly no money, how was he going to survive? After weeks he had an encounter with a former soldier named Ebenezer Woodruff, who then made Curzon come to his senses and enlist into the war to fight against the british. It was a winning situation for Curzon since being a soldier gave him the opportunity to receive a change of clothes, shelter, and more importantly food. Soon time went by and months had past of Curzon still enlisted as a soldier he encountered a former “friend” Mister Bellingham. Curzon was not pleased to have seen him again, since there past is there conflict to the present. Many things escalated and Curzon was now working for Mister Bellingham and so was Isabel as a maid. Since he was now reconciled with Isabel they worked on an escape plan. Weeks working they eventually escaped and we're now to begin their new journey in which continues in the final book of the series.

In the novel Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson, there are many definitions to the word forge. For one, Curzon forges his way into the army. Additionally, the hardships Curzon experiences during war forge him into a much stronger person. Finally, Curzon develops into a more mature and strong person by expressing his emotions for Isabel. Forge is a multi-layered word with many different meanings and applications. Throughout the book, Anderson gives many different examples.

Symbols are often proposed to help get the audience to question themselves and the way they think. An example of a Symbolism what do you consider to be the value of life and how they present it in a story? Many people will say life is greater than anything else on Earth, but then why do people go around smashing bugs or destroying trees or getting abortions? “Scholars would talk about symbolism in writing, but no one had asked the writers.” At any state, many other people are forced to consider that their view on the subject is. Stephen Crane most definitely plays with rhetorical questions and the symbols that follow those questions, especially in The Red Badge of Courage and An Episode of War.

War forces young soldiers to grow up quickly. In Stephen Crane’s Civil War novel, The Red Badge of Courage, Henry Fleming is no exception. He is faced with the hard reality of war and this forces him to readjust his romantic beliefs about war. Through the novel, the reader can trace the growth and development of Henry through these four stages: (1) romanticizing war and the heroic role each soldier plays, (2) facing the realities of war, (3) lying to himself to maintain his self-importance, and (4) realistic awareness of his abilities and place in life. Through Henry’s experiences in his path to self-discovery, he is strongly affected by events that help shape his ideology of war, death,