Throughout history, war has been a popular topic among writers seeking inspiration for new pieces. This includes everything from on-site reporting to fictional works based on real wars or battles. Looking at the publication timeline of different war novels, it's easy to see a trend in writing styles. Stories like Hemingway's “A Farewell to Arms” seem to exaggerate the details of war, appealing to an audience that wants to see a romanticized façade of war. However, more modern war stories - mostly from the late 20th century to the present 21st century - still retain darker moments and retain the vividness the genre is so known for, while being less grandiose in scale and detail. In addition to sharing general and personal accounts of war, the genre remains true to one of the main goals of writing which is to communicate opinions and emotions. War stories have always been a platform for writers to express their feelings about war, either directly or through an elaborate story. The most popular era for these stories is the 20th century. During this period, American writers were actively involved in some of the largest wars in the history of our nation and the world. Some of the most famous works include "The War Prayer", "Soldier's Home" and "The Things They Carried". Regardless of whether or not these authors actually saw combat, their works still touch on the internal conflict caused by war, the opposing views brought about by war, and other psychological and emotional effects that war induces. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The excerpt titled “On the Rainy River” from Tim O'Brien's work is a great example of a piece that covers some of the more unexpected internal effects of war. Overall, the story seems to begin as a seemingly more personal war tale, but deeper into the novel it tends to move away from this basic genre and forms its own valuable lessons. However, the passage is still an excellent portrayal of the emotional effects of war because in addition to developing personal conflicts, it does so in a way that the journey and outcome surprises the reader. The protagonist, Tim O'Brien, who is a semi-autobiographical character within this meta-fiction, struggles to decide whether to run away from the Vietnam War draft or simply face it and enlist. As the chapter comes to a close, the typical reader will be confused to read that O'Brien thought running away to Canada was the option that required the most courage, while the option he chose, enlisting, he considered cowardly. In fact, he states his only reason for going to war when he writes "I would go to war - I would kill and perhaps die - because I was ashamed not to." Ultimately, just the thought of war was enough, in a way, to drive O'Brien to sacrifice his life for the effort. In this way, war is able to create strong feelings of guilt in the mind that ultimately suppress all other internal instincts, whether they lead to good or bad decisions. O'Brien also says his decision to fight will have repercussions that are beyond question. of its control. During the river scene, O'Brien writes, "My whole life seemed to pour into the river...everything I had ever been or wanted to be." His mention of his future dreams, now abandoned, means that the psychological effects of war may spread far beyond the present. For O'Brien believes that all his ambitions are now lost due toof his decision to fight, this shows that the effects of wars are not localized to a specific point in a person's life, but rather that they have lasting consequences that can change the course. of your life permanently. Going into a more in-depth analysis of “On the Rainy River”, we can see how war tends to create divided sides due to different points of view. Typically, there are avid supporters of war as well as avid opponents of conflict. Several pro-war groups are mentioned as O'Brien begins to get frustrated with "their blind, reckless acquiescence in everything." Ultimately, this mention of a division of the population returns towards the end of the piece in a more physical way. In a setting with a literal divide between the land - which is the river - O'Brien, the only opponent of the war mentioned up to this point, first surveys the free Canadian coast, then turns to his homeland to see all groups. of people urging him to join the war effort. This scene has a very patriotic feel due to the imagery used to describe the Minnesota coast. Furthermore, the example as a whole is still able to present the passion that comes with war and how it is able to influence uneducated minds to support the effort. In addition to the internal effects that war can have before the conflict begins, it can also have equally drastic post-combat results. In Ernest Hemingway's “The Soldier's Home,” the reader sees a much more psychological effect of war rather than the emotional split seen in Tim O'Brien's work. In the story, Krebs, a soldier returning from World War I, has difficulty reacclimating to his hometown due to his experiences during his service. He tries to be open about his time during the war, but finds that the only way to overcome his long-vanished interest in knowing war stories is to lie to the people he talks to. When Hemingway writes "Kreb has acquired nausea towards experience which is the result of falsehood or exaggeration", it can be inferred that lying in every conversation begins to sicken him and his views on life in general become more frank and direct than before . been shaped by war. Today, Krebs' general condition would be described as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and its side effects almost always include being antisocial and depressed. This concept of being disconnected from society led him to reconsider his beliefs and even led him to reject his own desire to pursue a girl. In the story it was even said that “the world they were in was not the world he was in”, showing that he was mentally detached from the rest of the community. Ultimately, Krebs' condition never improved throughout the story, proving that the lasting psychological damage the author was trying to highlight has the ability to make people feel emotionally detached from society, consequently causing further changes physical in lifestyle. changes, Hemingway's piece also alludes to the changes in belief that events such as war can cause. Common, core values ​​(at the time of World War I) such as love and religion were all altered in Krebs' head just because of a single tour of duty. When he talks to his mother, religion is brought up. Once he states that he is “not in his Kingdom” and refuses to pray when asked by his mother, it is evident that his position on the matter has clearly changed due to his mother's shocked reaction to these answers. Beyond that, Krebs also seems to reject the.