Stereotypes Of A Soldier
Along with military deployment comes an “opportunity” for innocent, young boys to prove themselves as ruthless men of war. Embodying the soldier identity takes a lot of grit. A cautious soldier will inevitably be met with failure and disappointment in the daily battles which accompany war. When faced with gruesome reality, unfamiliar to Vietnam’s fresh recruits, these boys of war must choose to embrace the soldier persona or fall victim of their own cowardice. A young man’s ability to take up his soldier duties determines whether or not the will come home as a hero, or not at all. Being at war puts immense pressure on naive, childlike men to fit the stereotype of an all American soldier; whether that means bottling up emotions, concealing pain,
…show more content…
Consequently, if a soldier comes home from war with stories of failure and sadness rather than of success and achievement, he’s at risk of letting his family and peers down. Soldiers don’t go to war to sit around crying and talking about their feelings. Lieutenants reward soldiers for completing tasks such as destroying enemy forces and taking over enemy territory. Killing other human beings is a potential task that’s implied in the job description. One soldier states, “I would go to war--I would kill and maybe die--because I was embarrassed not to” (O’Brien 57). He believes that going to war, and taking the life of another person is crucial to maintaining his reputation back home. Our society has become one that prioritizes military success over the happiness of our veterans. O’Brien addresses this theme at the end of On the Rainy River, where he writes, “I survived, but it's not a happy ending” (O’Brien 79). Through embracing his soldier identity, killing men and becoming detached from his own emotions, O’Brien was able to survive the war. Nevertheless, the war took a major toll on his state of mind directly after Vietnam. He may have come home with shiny medals to show his parents, but he can’t say the same for his morals. Deployment to Vietnam serves as a fork in the road, where soldiers are required to choose between maintaining their sense of right and wrong or meeting society's expectations for a modern-day
Consequently, if a soldier comes home from war with stories of failure and sadness rather than of success and achievement, he’s at risk of letting his family and peers down. Soldiers don’t go to war to sit around crying and talking about their feelings. Lieutenants reward soldiers for completing tasks such as destroying enemy forces and taking over enemy territory. Killing other human beings is a potential task that’s implied in the job description. One soldier states, “I would go to war--I would kill and maybe die--because I was embarrassed not to” (O’Brien 57). He believes that going to war, and taking the life of another person is crucial to maintaining his reputation back home. Our society has become one that prioritizes military success over the happiness of our veterans. O’Brien addresses this theme at the end of On the Rainy River, where he writes, “I survived, but it's not a happy ending” (O’Brien 79). Through embracing his soldier identity, killing men and becoming detached from his own emotions, O’Brien was able to survive the war. Nevertheless, the war took a major toll on his state of mind directly after Vietnam. He may have come home with shiny medals to show his parents, but he can’t say the same for his morals. Deployment to Vietnam serves as a fork in the road, where soldiers are required to choose between maintaining their sense of right and wrong or meeting society's expectations for a modern-day