He is constantly jealous of the men who have received their ghastly red badges of courage. Henry automatically sees their wounds as perfect scores on the standardized courage test. These men, in Henry’s perspective, can have a clear measure of themselves with no shame involved, unlike Henry. Also, he is extremely envious that these soldiers have just gotten their tickets to safety from the “blood-swollen god” via war wound. In contrast, Jim Conklin acts as a complete opposite to Henry’s brash personality throughout the novel. Conklin is a role model to Henry, and he serves as a basis for the soldier that Henry secretly wishes to be. Jim is not loud or boastful; he is only there to fulfill a responsibility to the cause and get the job done. Even in death he is humble, for he had accepted the reality of being an authentic man. War had highlighted Conklin’s best traits, but it had also taken his life. His death would serve as a life-changer for …show more content…
By knowing what he is capable of, a soldier will realize what he needs to do in order to improve. He knows what duty he has and the skills that he possesses to do it. By accepting how he is, this soldier is given an advantage. He no longer fears the day of his time to die comes. He knows that he has completed his job and does not attempt to glorify his death. However, if he lives, he knows that the task at hand comes before his life, The most authentic men know that glory is truly insignificant in the long run. For example, Wilson believed he was incapable of surviving the first skirmish against the Confederacy. Later, he learns that he is capable of much more. Wilson had become much more mature and had developed a quiet sense of pride, and he has also become a much better soldier and man. Henry also makes the discovery that he is one of the best and fiercest fighters in the regiment.
War is an acceptable way for a person to measure the moral character of himself or herself, but it is not the only way to evaluate one’s amount of courage, humbleness, or self-capability. However, it is one of the best ways to measure one’s self because it is not only a physical measurement. War, in fact, is primarily psychological.
Today, many people would accept the idea that war is an effective as the assessment of man. In present-day, soldiers often come back from battle completely new people with entirely different opinions