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I need help with something

J

Johnnyboy

New Member
Hello forum-members,

I'm new here and I would really like you to help me with something for my English Book Comparison for school.

I have to compare 5 English novels that all goes about war.
The comparison must be based on a thesis. The thesis I have chosen is: In war, both sides lose.

I would really like you guys to recommend me some easy war novels. The war novels must make clear wether both sides lose in the war, or one of the sides gets the victory.

I really hope you could help me out with this and I'd really appreciate it :) .

Many thanks, John.
 
Thanks for the fast reply :) .

However, I've searched alot at amazon and google but I can never
make out wether the war novels make my thesis clear or not (not even in the reviews). I can't see wether the novels make clear that one side wins or both loses.
That's why I'm asking here because there could be members who have read a few war novels and know if they are suitable for my thesis or not :) .
 
Let's see, try All Quiet on the Western Front. It's about one of the world wars and told from the German standpoint. Rather depressing and I think you could argue that both sides lose in a moral/metaphorical sort of way.

Another really good war novel is The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. It's about the Vietnam war, told from the perspective of an American soldier. You could make the same statement as for All Quiet.

Neither of those books are terribly challenging; I read them in high school without a problem.
 
KristoCat said:
Let's see, try All Quiet on the Western Front. It's about one of the world wars and told from the German standpoint. Rather depressing and I think you could argue that both sides lose in a moral/metaphorical sort of way.

Another really good war novel is The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. It's about the Vietnam war, told from the perspective of an American soldier. You could make the same statement as for All Quiet.

Neither of those books are terribly challenging; I read them in high school without a problem.
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I thank you very much for your help! However, I'm very sorry because I forgot to say that the novels has to be written by an English writer. So, if anyone of you guys know such a few novels from an English author, I would appreciate a lot. But thank you anyway for your help, Kristo :) .
 
Oh dear. Out of the ones I've read I can only think of A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, and that's really about the French Revolution, not a war. And then there's Time's Arrow by Martin Amis, which is quite challenging because it's written in a more obscure, postmodern style. It's about the Holocaust though.

Good luck...
 
Maybe some of the books by Shaara--can't remember his first name--would be good for you. He wrote good historical fiction about the Civil War. His books The Killer Angels and Gods and Generals have been made into movies, although The Killer Angels is better known as Gettysburg.
 
Omg, I seem to be very clumsy. I misunderstood my English teacher. The nationality of the writer doesn't matter. It's the novel that has to be originally English, thus not translated or anything. So don't mind where the writer came from guys, the novel just has to be originally English. I'm very sorry for my stupidity :p

@kristo and valkyr: I thank both of you alot :).

And Kristo, I guess the book All Quiet on the Western Front is translated?
 
Maybe you should change your thesis, Johnny. How about: in war, bad things happen. That'll be a cinch.
 
Hi,

Yes, All Quiet was originally written in German. So I guess you should leave that one alone for now.

But here's another one for you: Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt is about the American Civil War. It tells the story about how the war tore a family apart.

And another one: A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. It's about a guy in World War I and it's also kind of a sad love story.

Both of these were written by Americans in English originally.

P.S. If you are looking for more paper ideas, try http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/index.html
 
Shade said:
Maybe you should change your thesis, Johnny. How about: in war, bad things happen. That'll be a cinch.
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I'm sorry, I've already started discussing the quotations from a novel that are related to my thesis. Also, I find your thesis sound a bit too obvious. :p Thanks for your help though :)

Kristo: I couldn't be more thankful to you. :)
 
Try Johhny Got His Gun...I don't remember the author's name off the top of my head, but it was a horrible war book...banned for a while after its publication.
 
I think you could advance your thesis with "Cold Mountain" by Charles Frazier. Although the main characters were southerners, the book, (more so than the movie), showed how dehumanizing the war was for both sides.
I say "dehumanizing" because it showed how ordinary people on both sides behaved abominably and cruelly, and did things they probably would not have done in a different setting. I think being in the war changed them, and for the main character, he felt he was no longer human, even, and that's why he left the war.
Even if it doesn't advance your thesis, I just think it's a terrific book.

Mary
 
Saginaw said:
I think you could advance your thesis with "Cold Mountain" by Charles Frazier. Although the main characters were southerners, the book, (more so than the movie), showed how dehumanizing the war was for both sides.
I say "dehumanizing" because it showed how ordinary people on both sides behaved abominably and cruelly, and did things they probably would not have done in a different setting. I think being in the war changed them, and for the main character, he felt he was no longer human, even, and that's why he left the war.
Even if it doesn't advance your thesis, I just think it's a terrific book.

Mary
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From your post, I could make out that this book is perfect for my comparison :) . Thank you alot for your help. I'm going to search for it in the library ;) .
 
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