Dr Rivers In Regeneration
For God and Country refers to the sacrifice that individuals or groups of people make for the strength and development of their nation. The novel Regeneration focuses on the soldiers that have been sent to Craiglockhart, a mental hospital where casualties suffering from physiological disorders from the first world war have been sent. Two main characters that the book focuses on are Dr Rivers, a psychiatrist that helps cure the soldiers so that they can return to war and perform their duties, and Seigfreid Sassoon who has been sent to Craiglockhart to be 'cured from shell-shock'. In this novel, the reader is able to connect and understand each character through the use of the characters voices and moods. Pat Barker is not only able to capture
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each characters mood, thoughts, feelings and personality through her use of emotive language and writing techniques, but also captures the area of study, For God and Country.
Siegfried Sassoon is one of the main characters in the novel Regeneration. Out of the wide variety of soldier characters that the book offers, Sassoon is the most focused on. This is due to his political views and the ultimate sacrifices that he has made, not only for his country by fighting in the war, but for the rest of his troops as he takes his values and beliefs and stands up to the British Government. The opening of the book is a copy of the declaration that Sassoon has written to the government explaining why he has decided to remove himself from his duties at war. He believes that the war is inhumane, pointless and horrific, and goes on to explain in his declaration that he entered the war to serve his country, however does not comprehend why the war is still in action when it can be ended. ' I believe the war is being deliberately prolonged by those who have the power to end it'. As he was a soldier in the war, he knows the suffering and effects that come as a consequence. ' I am not protesting against the war, but against the political errors and insecurities for which the fighting men are being sacrificed'. From this statement, we are able to understand Sassoon's intentions of his letter. Sassoon believes that the troops have suffered much more than needed and that it is time to end an 'evil and unjust' war. The declaration links with For God and Country as the topic is about the sacrifices that people make for their nation. Not only has Sassoon shown this through his participation in the war but also writing the declaration which shows himself making a deliberate choice in letting the public know about the ugliness of the war.
By opening the book with Sassoon's declaration, Pat Barker has let the reader be able to form an idea of what the novel is about. They gather that it is an 'anti-war' novel and have the sense that they will be seeing the war from a soldiers point of view, not from the governments. After reading the declaration, a conversation between Bryce and Rivers takes place, who in due course of the novel, we get to know more about their characters. This conversation gives the reader some background information about Sassoon's character and the reason he is being sent to Craiglockhart. The next few chapters goes back and fourth, past to present, from character to character, so that we are able to obtain more information before reaching the beginning of Sassoon's time at Craiglockhart. For example, in chapter one we read the declaration. The next paragraph is a conversation between Rivers and Bryce, which is then transitioned to Sassoon having a conversation with Robert, and then going back to Rivers again. By writing the first few chapters like this, Pat Barker has deliberately written it to the readers advantage. At times it may become confusing as we are trying to become familiar with the characters, but it gives the reader a sense of suspense to read on and learn more.
Ultimately, Sassoon has been sent to Craiglockhart, a mental hospital, to be cured from shell shock. This is what the reader is told, but when reading the different conversations between the different characters, the reader starts to wonder whether that is the real reason that he is sent there. In actual fact, the British Government was not accepting of his declaration, so they had sentenced him to Craiglockhart to be 'cured' so that he can return to his duties at war. He would have been executed if he was court marshalled, but by being sent to the hospital, whatever he said could be blamed on his mental health, even thought there were no obvious symptoms of shell shock.
Dr Rivers is one of the main doctors at Craiglockhart, but the book tends to focus on him the most.
He is a psychiatrist who deals with victims suffering physiological disorders from their participation in the first world war. His job was to 'cure' the soldiers, so that they were fit to return back to their duties. We are able to see that his character is hard working, very involved and dedicated to his career and interacts with his patients the best he can. He does not have a lot of time to himself, because each minute of every day he is analysing, helping and ultimately trying to cure the patients so that they can return to war. Compared to the other doctors that we are introduced to, Rivers is the most understanding and interactive. We gather from the first few pages that he is one of the best doctors in his field, as on page 4 Rivers asks 'so they're sending him here?', with which Bryce replies, ' oh, I think its more specific than that. They're sending him to you'. In just the first few pages we are able to see that Dr Rivers is highly qualified, and the reader is able to make their own judgement as to why Sassoon was sent to the most qualified doctor, such as whether it was deliberate from the government. The use of italics on the word 'you' emphasises and stresses this point. As we read on, we are able to notice that privately, Rivers believes and understands the consequences of the war, but he still has to practice and fulfil his duties as a psychiatrist and aid the soldiers to be cured from shell shock and complete their duties. 'his patients might be encouraged to acknowledge their fears, their horror of the war, but they were still expected to do their duty and return to
France'.
The use of Pat Barkers writing techniques and emotive language help the reader to understand each character better. By writing in 3rd person, we are given an insight into the thoughts, feelings and emotions of all characters, especially those of Sassoon and Rivers. The use of italics are used to emphasis a point, as well as sarcasm and irony. Not only do we learn about each character from themselves, but also from other peoples point of view. This makes the book unbiased as inputs from each characters thoughts and views are placed. In some cases we may say that the book is 'anti war' so it makes the novel biased, however with Pat Barkers strong and persuasive writing and language we are able to see that the war is inhumane, pointless and destructive. It also gives us a sense of sympathy to the soldiers as we are taken to their world of strength, sacrifice and determination, and read on as they retell their horrific experiences of the war and the consequences they are now left with. We do not only gain information about each character through their use of speech and actions, but also through texts such as the declaration, or poems written by Sassoon and Wilfred Owen.
Pat Barker definitely has the ability to capture her characters thoughts, feelings and emotions through her use of language and clear writing techniques. The reader becomes accustomed to each character, and feels that they must read on to see the final outcome. Not only does she capture each characters personality, but relates the novel to the are of study, For God and Country. People at the home front were told that the war was helping their nation, however by reading the novel we are able to see that it was anything but. Days of the continuous fire of artillery guns; the continuous death of thousands of men; the continuous sounds of shells being blasted; the continuous sense of helplessness and devastation. All to fight a pointless war.
each characters mood, thoughts, feelings and personality through her use of emotive language and writing techniques, but also captures the area of study, For God and Country.
Siegfried Sassoon is one of the main characters in the novel Regeneration. Out of the wide variety of soldier characters that the book offers, Sassoon is the most focused on. This is due to his political views and the ultimate sacrifices that he has made, not only for his country by fighting in the war, but for the rest of his troops as he takes his values and beliefs and stands up to the British Government. The opening of the book is a copy of the declaration that Sassoon has written to the government explaining why he has decided to remove himself from his duties at war. He believes that the war is inhumane, pointless and horrific, and goes on to explain in his declaration that he entered the war to serve his country, however does not comprehend why the war is still in action when it can be ended. ' I believe the war is being deliberately prolonged by those who have the power to end it'. As he was a soldier in the war, he knows the suffering and effects that come as a consequence. ' I am not protesting against the war, but against the political errors and insecurities for which the fighting men are being sacrificed'. From this statement, we are able to understand Sassoon's intentions of his letter. Sassoon believes that the troops have suffered much more than needed and that it is time to end an 'evil and unjust' war. The declaration links with For God and Country as the topic is about the sacrifices that people make for their nation. Not only has Sassoon shown this through his participation in the war but also writing the declaration which shows himself making a deliberate choice in letting the public know about the ugliness of the war.
By opening the book with Sassoon's declaration, Pat Barker has let the reader be able to form an idea of what the novel is about. They gather that it is an 'anti-war' novel and have the sense that they will be seeing the war from a soldiers point of view, not from the governments. After reading the declaration, a conversation between Bryce and Rivers takes place, who in due course of the novel, we get to know more about their characters. This conversation gives the reader some background information about Sassoon's character and the reason he is being sent to Craiglockhart. The next few chapters goes back and fourth, past to present, from character to character, so that we are able to obtain more information before reaching the beginning of Sassoon's time at Craiglockhart. For example, in chapter one we read the declaration. The next paragraph is a conversation between Rivers and Bryce, which is then transitioned to Sassoon having a conversation with Robert, and then going back to Rivers again. By writing the first few chapters like this, Pat Barker has deliberately written it to the readers advantage. At times it may become confusing as we are trying to become familiar with the characters, but it gives the reader a sense of suspense to read on and learn more.
Ultimately, Sassoon has been sent to Craiglockhart, a mental hospital, to be cured from shell shock. This is what the reader is told, but when reading the different conversations between the different characters, the reader starts to wonder whether that is the real reason that he is sent there. In actual fact, the British Government was not accepting of his declaration, so they had sentenced him to Craiglockhart to be 'cured' so that he can return to his duties at war. He would have been executed if he was court marshalled, but by being sent to the hospital, whatever he said could be blamed on his mental health, even thought there were no obvious symptoms of shell shock.
Dr Rivers is one of the main doctors at Craiglockhart, but the book tends to focus on him the most.
He is a psychiatrist who deals with victims suffering physiological disorders from their participation in the first world war. His job was to 'cure' the soldiers, so that they were fit to return back to their duties. We are able to see that his character is hard working, very involved and dedicated to his career and interacts with his patients the best he can. He does not have a lot of time to himself, because each minute of every day he is analysing, helping and ultimately trying to cure the patients so that they can return to war. Compared to the other doctors that we are introduced to, Rivers is the most understanding and interactive. We gather from the first few pages that he is one of the best doctors in his field, as on page 4 Rivers asks 'so they're sending him here?', with which Bryce replies, ' oh, I think its more specific than that. They're sending him to you'. In just the first few pages we are able to see that Dr Rivers is highly qualified, and the reader is able to make their own judgement as to why Sassoon was sent to the most qualified doctor, such as whether it was deliberate from the government. The use of italics on the word 'you' emphasises and stresses this point. As we read on, we are able to notice that privately, Rivers believes and understands the consequences of the war, but he still has to practice and fulfil his duties as a psychiatrist and aid the soldiers to be cured from shell shock and complete their duties. 'his patients might be encouraged to acknowledge their fears, their horror of the war, but they were still expected to do their duty and return to
France'.
The use of Pat Barkers writing techniques and emotive language help the reader to understand each character better. By writing in 3rd person, we are given an insight into the thoughts, feelings and emotions of all characters, especially those of Sassoon and Rivers. The use of italics are used to emphasis a point, as well as sarcasm and irony. Not only do we learn about each character from themselves, but also from other peoples point of view. This makes the book unbiased as inputs from each characters thoughts and views are placed. In some cases we may say that the book is 'anti war' so it makes the novel biased, however with Pat Barkers strong and persuasive writing and language we are able to see that the war is inhumane, pointless and destructive. It also gives us a sense of sympathy to the soldiers as we are taken to their world of strength, sacrifice and determination, and read on as they retell their horrific experiences of the war and the consequences they are now left with. We do not only gain information about each character through their use of speech and actions, but also through texts such as the declaration, or poems written by Sassoon and Wilfred Owen.
Pat Barker definitely has the ability to capture her characters thoughts, feelings and emotions through her use of language and clear writing techniques. The reader becomes accustomed to each character, and feels that they must read on to see the final outcome. Not only does she capture each characters personality, but relates the novel to the are of study, For God and Country. People at the home front were told that the war was helping their nation, however by reading the novel we are able to see that it was anything but. Days of the continuous fire of artillery guns; the continuous death of thousands of men; the continuous sounds of shells being blasted; the continuous sense of helplessness and devastation. All to fight a pointless war.