Why Are Soldiers So Weak

A big problem in American army was that soldiers was taking care for their own interests and not for the interest their fellow soldiers. An example of this was when Martin badly injured his foot and when he went to see surgeon he was told to wait for the surgeon's game was not to be interrupted by “minor affairs”.Martin also explained his encounter with a “wounded captain” who “begged his sergeant to help him off the field”and how the captain was disregarded until Martin stepped in to help. This situation shows that instead than risking their lives for each other ,they prefer to allow their fellow colleges to die than spend extra energy in saving them. A reason for this probably was the motive for entering the army. Most of the soldiers enlisted in the army because of the money. Problems in the relations had not only soldier to soldier but also soldier to officers. Martin stated this in the comment which an officer gave him about sick soldier:”If he dies the country will be rid of someone who can do it no good.”This comment showed us that the officer did not have any respect for the sick soldier.

When a soldier's name was called he was to report to his local draft board. The local draft board was made up of many community members. He was to report as soon as possible so they could evaluate his status. The only way to avoid the draft was to either have mental issues, were married, had children, attending college, or they were needed at home to help support their families.

20) O’Brien tells how these young men were drafted which were constantly in fear, they wished to be there obliviously but war takes up all of one’s attention; it played a big role in their life, changing their tactics, personality and becoming a new person. O’Brien uses this to show the stressful moments in war where one has pressure to be alive and in this case to fit in with everyone else and feel part of something, in a lonely place such as the war.

Hedges opens the article by offering his firsthand experience with the negative effects of war on the poor, thus establishing credibility. Hedges states, “Those I knew in prep school did not seek out the military and were not sought by it. But in the improvised enclaves of central Maine, where I had relatives living in trailers, nearly everyone was a veteran” (321). Here, Hedges explains how the poor turned to military for a better life, whereas the rich did not have to join the military. Hedges grew up on both sides of the metaphorical railroad track. He acquired an authentic viewpoint on how the military lures in the poor with empty promises of a fast climb up the social ladder. Later in the

This passage helps the reader understand how the emotional burden of uncertain death weighed on the soldier. However, it also acts as a symbol by giving light to the fact that the emotional baggage they carry was brought about by their own fear of humiliation and shame. Many of the soldiers are there only to avoid the persecution that ensued those who evaded the draft. Through the use of symbolism, O’Brien is able to effectively highlight the burdens faced by the soldiers who conformed to the expectations of society.

     The narrator is torn between two worlds. In his heart and mind, he knows that the war is wrong and unjust. In his family, town, and nation, however, he was expected to fight. He must cross a number of hurdles on his way to a life altering decision. It seems the man has gotten beyond the idea of self embarrassment. The problem for Cross, it seems, is the fact that his decision affects everyone around him. Like any young man in those times, he was scared. Not scared of death, but scared of life after the war. He knows that is he does not go to the war, his mother, his father, and all his friends will share the burden of his embarrassment. That is why he must go to the war. In a noble sort of way, Cross saves his family the embarrassment of draft dodging. In his mind, however, he is a coward, a man who simply put, could not stand up to himself in a time of turmoil. This lack of confidence and self assurance is something

“Personal honor is the one thing valued more than life itself by the majority of men” (McPherson 77). The reoccurring theme of brotherhood in the story plays a major role as to why a soldier has come to war and why he performs on the battlefield. Brotherhood would be the best explanation for a soldier’s fight to protect one’s self and his comrades.

O’Brien illuminates the fear in the protagonist, as he describes his (Tim’s) fear of the war but also, being an outcast within his own family “Tim” feels everything that makes him who he is will be lost even if he survives the war. (O’Brien, 1990, pg. 42). As the protagonists flees to Wisconsin on his way to Canada, to avoid the draft, he came upon little cabin where this older person knew why he was there. The old man lets “Tim” stay in the woods, there he cuts wood, fishes and repairs the cabin while he makes peace with himself only to return home, not be cowardice, and serve his country. Here the protagonists stayed several days thinking he can flee to the border easier since it was just across the lake, then comes to his senses hence, returns to face his fear of future death and

their husbands, brothers and fathers to build a better nation. But I believe this was more than just

How maybe he was a scholar and maybe his parents were farmers.  Then O'Brien goes on to talk of maybe why this young man was in the army, and maybe why he was fighting;  these are something’s that are taught in the schools.  O'Brien states that the man may have joined because he was struggling for independence, juts like all the people that were fighting with him.  Maybe this man had been taught from the beginning that to defend the land was a mans highest duty and privilege.  Then on the other hand maybe he was not a good fighter, and maybe in poor health but had been told to fight and could not ask any questions.  These reasons are all reasons that are taught in textbooks; they go along with the idea of the draft.  Some people go fight because they want to and others go because they are told they have to. How do you tell these people apart in the heat of battle or when they are dead?  The way that O'Brien starts to describe the young man as someone who was small and frail, and maybe had plans for a bright future puts sorrow in the readers heart, in that all his plans can not happen for him or maybe the family that is longing for his return.  It also shows the regret that maybe going on in the killers’ mind.  For O'Brien to be writing on how this young mans life has come to a sudden end and his plans for the future is over is intriguing.  Then to add to that he had the story written through the eyes of the soldier that ended this young mans life.  The

This passage is very significant to the reality of the soldiers in the Vietnam War and brings to life the setting of the entire novel. The soldiers were primarily teenagers and young men in their early twenties who had not yet had the chance to experience life. They soon had found themselves in the midst of an intense war with nothing but uncertainty and fear. They hated it and they loved the fear and adrenaline that ran through their skin and bones. It

Since he was unable to make the leap towards Canada, “upstream” against the current, he went to the war. Right after he “submitted,” he cried “loud, hard.” Tim realized he was coward because he was “ashamed to be doing the right thing.” After his realization, he lost a significant part of his identity- his courage, even though it was illusionary. He didn’t look at himself the same way again. He called himself a “coward” at the end of the story, because he “went to the war.” His cowardness stemmed from the fact that he could not gather enough courage to move to Canada. After his illusion shattered, he lost his illusionary courage. Before and upon arrival of the draft notice, Tim believed that he had the courage to behave like a hero however, as the story progressed, he lost his courage. He made the decision to run to Canada, however when it came time to act upon the decision, he failed. Ultimately, Tim ended up feeling like a coward, as it “is not a happy

Big Meaning: This passage shows that when these men got their draft cards, it wasn’t easy. They did not just pack up and go. They fought, cried, were scared, and feared for their lives. It was that sense of a feeling that you may never return home.

“The dentist couldn’t find any problem, but Lemon kept insisting, so the man finally shrugged and shot in the Novocain and yanked out a perfectly good tooth. There was some pain, no doubt, but in the morning Curt Lemon was all smiles.” (O’Brien pg. 84)

Not everything was as pretty as it seemed, their family had issues that they had to overcome and the fear of loosing the battle away and at home was something that he struggled with on a daily basis when he was young. His mother was left with the entire burden when his father left and it eventually became too much to handle. His mother became an alcoholic and he and his family suffered tremendously from his mother’s sickness. He felt like if he had let his father down when he came home to find this out. Living with all females and putting up with them was too much for him that he decided to convince his father to send him to military school. This was the best thing that happened to him, because from here on he lived an Army world.