"Journey's End" by R.C Sherriff.
How does Journey's End show the effects of war on the
men involved?
Journey's End is a play about British soldiers in World War One, and the effects the war has on them, both physically and mentally. The play explores many aspects of war life, including friendship, alcoholism, class boundaries and the lifestyle of the men in the trenches. This essay explores how the play shows the effects of war on those involved, looking at use of dialogue, lighting, props and other key dramatic devices. The essay will mainly focus on Act 3, Scene 2 of the play, but relevant quotes from other scenes in Journey's End will also be used to help illustrate points.
Stanhope, the Commander of the company, is a prime example of how the war effected many intelligent, able young men. The audience knows Stanhope is a good officer and is well respected from earlier dialogue in the play. For example, in Act 1 Scene 1, Osborne says, "He's a long way the best company commander we've got", and Hardy agrees.
Stanhope is also a humorous man, and can get on very well with his fellow officers. For example, at the beginning of Act 3 Scene 2, he has all the men in stitches, relating tales of mischief with women.
However, he appears to only be in a good mood when he has been drinking, which he does a lot. We know this because in the very first scene of Journey's End, Hardy discusses Stanhope's drinking habits with Osborne, saying, "I never did see a youngster put away the whisky he does". One of the main effects of the war on Stanhope is his drinking. He drinks for "Dutch courage" on the battlefield, and in Act 1 he confesses this to Osborne, saying "If I went up those steps into the front line without being doped up with whisky I'd go mad with fright". This quote tells the audience that Stanhope has come to depend upon drinking to help him cope, and certainly has some kind of alcohol problem. The excessive drinking also greatly affects his temper, and he has fierce mood swings throughout the
men involved?
Journey's End is a play about British soldiers in World War One, and the effects the war has on them, both physically and mentally. The play explores many aspects of war life, including friendship, alcoholism, class boundaries and the lifestyle of the men in the trenches. This essay explores how the play shows the effects of war on those involved, looking at use of dialogue, lighting, props and other key dramatic devices. The essay will mainly focus on Act 3, Scene 2 of the play, but relevant quotes from other scenes in Journey's End will also be used to help illustrate points.
Stanhope, the Commander of the company, is a prime example of how the war effected many intelligent, able young men. The audience knows Stanhope is a good officer and is well respected from earlier dialogue in the play. For example, in Act 1 Scene 1, Osborne says, "He's a long way the best company commander we've got", and Hardy agrees.
Stanhope is also a humorous man, and can get on very well with his fellow officers. For example, at the beginning of Act 3 Scene 2, he has all the men in stitches, relating tales of mischief with women.
However, he appears to only be in a good mood when he has been drinking, which he does a lot. We know this because in the very first scene of Journey's End, Hardy discusses Stanhope's drinking habits with Osborne, saying, "I never did see a youngster put away the whisky he does". One of the main effects of the war on Stanhope is his drinking. He drinks for "Dutch courage" on the battlefield, and in Act 1 he confesses this to Osborne, saying "If I went up those steps into the front line without being doped up with whisky I'd go mad with fright". This quote tells the audience that Stanhope has come to depend upon drinking to help him cope, and certainly has some kind of alcohol problem. The excessive drinking also greatly affects his temper, and he has fierce mood swings throughout the