The Literature of War
by
Rea Berg
Since
the beginning of recorded history, war has defined the story of mankind in
profound ways. Man's propensity for war
reflects not only his fallen nature but also the sublime heights to which he
can rise in selfless acts of courage and heroism. No wonder then, that entire
periods of history are often characterized by the wars that were fought and by
the literature created by those seeking to ascribe meaning to these times of
tremendous upheaval.
One
of the earliest epics known to mankind, the Iliad
is the poet Homer's account of the final year of the decade-long Trojan
War. The Iliad is a study in human nature, the capricious nature of the
Greek gods, and the immutable quest for immortality through military
glory. From this enduring epic many of
our western notions about war derive their essence. For instance, the Trojan hero, Hector
wrestles with whether or not the war he wages against the Greeks is a just war,
since it was instigated by his brother Paris's ill-fated dalliance with Helen,
the wife of the Greek hero, Menelaus. In reality, Hector has little choice, as
he either fights or watches the destruction of his city. When his beloved wife
Andromache begs Hector to leave the battle and return to her and their young
son, the scene is one of the most heart wrenching in literature; echoing the
sublime tragedy repeated every time a soldier dies defending his homeland. The profound beauty and enduring relevance of
the Iliad rests upon the ways this
epic presents the various faces of war through the Greek and Trojan heroes as
well as the impact upon their wives, their families, and their societies.
The
battles and military engagements of the Old Testament patriarchs also reflect
universal themes of war, but with a key difference. While the heroes of the ancient Greek and
Roman works battled for immortality through military glory, the military
engagements of the Israelites are purposed by God in his plan to establish a
chosen people to reflect his glory and prepare a people for the coming of his
Son–the one who would hail as the Prince of Peace. God rejected the warrior King David in
building the Temple because he had "shed blood abundantly and had made
great wars"; the King of Glory comes as the peacemaker–he comes to a war
torn world to bring "peace on earth, good will to men" (1 Chr. 22:8,
Luke 2:14).
Wars of the Old World
Wars
that are depicted in great works of literature for mature readers (high school)
include War and Peace by the Russian
author and patriot, Leo Tolstoy. One of
the world's finest works, this tome treats the Napoleonic invasion of Russia in
1812 and though fictional, presents over 150 historical characters. Les Misérables by Victor Hugo depicts the
uprisings of the French Republicans in 1832 as students sought to overthrow the
French monarchy. The splendor of Hugo's
work is that within this beautifully crafted novel is a powerful tale of
redemption. Sentenced to nineteen years
in prison for stealing a piece of bread for his sister's starving child, when
finally released, the embittered Jean Valjean is redeemed through the kindness
and mercy of a humble parish priest. A
Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens opens in 1775, and in classic
Dickensian style throws light upon issues of class, injustice, and redemption
against the drama, intrigue and bloodshed of the French Revolution.
Wars of the New World
A
Caldecott Honor book of 1950, America's
Ethan Allen by Holbrook and Ward tells the life story of the "Green
Mountain Boy" Ethan Allen, who fought in both the French and Indian War
and the American Revolution. For
middle-grade readers, Johnny Tremain
by Esther Forbes depicts a prideful silversmith's apprentice and his
coming-of-age amidst the turbulent days leading to the war for
Independence. For younger readers, America's Paul Revere by Esther Forbes
presents the life of the gifted silversmith and patriot and the pivotal role he
played in America's struggle. George Washington and Benjamin Franklin by Ingri and Edgar
Parin D'Aulaire present primary readers with the stories of two of America's
most important founders and the service they rendered their young country.
Those who have enjoyed the work of David McCullough in his Pulitzer
Prize-winner, John Adams, will enjoy Abigail Adams: Witness to a Revolution
by Natalie Bober, as the author explores the amazing role Abigail played as
wife, counsel, and encourager to her patriot husband.
The
Civil War has been immortalized in far too many works to cover here, but a few
noteworthy ones include: Killer Angels
by Michael Sharra, another Pulitzer prize-winner. The Red
Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane is the first novel to wrestle with the
shame of the soldier who turns coward upon the battlefield, a common
occurrence, yet one not previously addressed in literature. Crane's depiction of the agonized mental
state of the young soldier, was a sea change in literature, and led the way for
other novels to follow. Two other Civil War novels for middle and junior high
level are Rifles for Watie by Harold
Keith and Across Five Aprils by Irene
Hunt. Both Newbery award-winning novels
present true-to-life depictions of teen protagonists facing the conflicted
reality of Northern versus Southern sentiments and the ways in which these
affect their families. In Bull Run by Paul Fleischman,
Northerners, Southerners, generals, couriers, dreaming boys, and worried
sisters describe the glory, the horror, the thrill, and the disillusionment of
the first battle of the Civil War. Undying
Glory: The Story of the Massachusetts 54th Regiment by Clinton Cox tells
the inspiring story of the first black Union regiment under the heroic and noble
Colonel Robert Gould Shaw.
Wars of the Modern World: The Bloodiest Century
The
twentieth-century was mankind's bloodiest in history. The scale of human tragedy and horror was
ushered in by the rise of communism, socialism and Nazism and compounded by the
dawn of atomic weapons, the horrors of Stalin's Russian gulag, Hitler's Nazi
death camps, and Mao Zedong's wholesale slaughter of untold millions of
Chinese. While none of these topics are
approached with relish, these are tales that must be told and knowing the best
works is essential.
Works
addressing World War I include: Erich Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front; like The Red Badge of Courage before it, deals with the horror and
ignominy of war from the perspective of young German soldiers. Two other works dealing with this period are:
The Yanks are Coming: America in World
War I and Stalin: Russia's Man of
Steel by the award-winning Albert Marrin.
Marrin's willingness to approach these topics specifically for the young
adult reader, is commendable in itself; parents who are committed to their
children knowing these stories will profit from his works.
Albert
Marrin has also written about World War II and both Hitler and Victory in the
Pacific are engagingly written and will educate students far better than
the best text book. A tender and sweet story to read to the intermediate aged
child is The House of Sixty Fathers
by Meindert Dejong. Set in China during
the Japanese occupation, young Tien Pao becomes separated from his family
behind Japanese lines. His desperate
search for his family and his fortune in being taken in by American soldiers
makes for a satisfying and uplifting story. The affect of the American bombing
of Hiroshima is told in a moving and provocative work entitled Hiroshima by John Hersey. Told through the first-person accounts of six
survivors of the bombing, Pulitzer prize-winning author Hersey puts a human
face upon one of history's most cataclysmic events. His follow-up on his six
survivors 40 years after Hiroshima makes a moving epilogue to this book.
The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom will
inspire readers with the Ten Boom's selfless devotion to helping their hunted
Jewish neighbors during the German occupation of Holland. Secreting their
neighbors in specially designed hiding places earns the Ten Booms betrayal,
arrest, and imprisonment at a notorious Nazi concentration camp. Despite the horror and deprivation of their
experience, Corrie triumphs through forgiveness of her enemies.
The
Korean War has been covered by three notable authors whose work I highly
recommend. For high-school level,
Richard Kim has written a moving memoir of his childhood in Korea while his
country is under Japanese occupation. Lost
Names presents a devoted Christian family, the terror and deprivations of
daily life under a ruthless regime, and the power of integrity, courage, and
honor in Korea's darkest hour. So Far From the Bamboo Grove by Yoko
Kawashima Watkins is the story of a young Japanese girl who grows up in Korea
where her family is stationed as part of the Japanese occupation. After the
surrender of Japan, Yoko, her mother and sister must escape through hostile
territory. The Year of Impossible Good
Byes by Sook Nyul Choi is the true story of a young Korean girl who lives
through separation from her family, endless treks through dangerous territory,
deprivation and narrow escapes. Her
tenacity, courage and faith are an inspiration.
This
brief article can hardly do justice to the multitude of classic and historical
works delving into the countless wars that have made up such a significant part
of the record of mankind. Hopefully, the
list above will acquaint you with treasures new and old, and enrich and enhance
your studies of these important eras of history.
Rea Berg has home schooled for over twenty-five years and
loves organic gardening, travel to historic sites, nineteenth-century
literature, and dance. Rea has a B.A. in English from Simmons College and a
graduate degree in children’s literature. She has written numerous guides for
studying history through literature and has republished many classic children’s
works. With her husband, she owns Beautiful
Feet Books (www.bfbooks.com) and
can be emailed at rea@bfbooks.com.
She blogs on children's literature at: www.reaberg.com
