Tim O'Brien said “A true war story is never moral.” In both “The Red Badge of courage”, written by Stephen Crane, and the movie “Paths of Glory,” directed by Stanley Kubrick, this statement takes upon a new meaning. Both Crane and Kubrick validate this message by showing that men grow selfish in the race to war glory and status, which in turn dehumanizes and uselessly kills innocent soldiers. They are expected to look this death in the face with unconditional bravery, which is against human nature.
War is typically fought between two sides, each with its own purpose and goal. Team effort is essential and even critical. How can one side succeed if it has its own internal conflict and battle? This is a hindrance to the whole company; thus weakening any chances of victory. To desire anything that contradicts victory is selfish. In “The Red Badge of Courage,” the Youth enlisted in war all for glory. He didn’t desire the victory of his company, but only the reputation of a hero. He became embarrassed for running from battle. There is …show more content…
A common theme in “The Red Badge of Courage” and “Paths of Glory” is the useless loss of lives. In the Civil War, 620,000 men lost their lives. Crane explains the dead bodies as “debris” on the ground, and portrays death as something the generals saw as numbers. Soldiers were dehumanized, and those who were the weakest and most fearful were easily disposed for missions such as sweeping the woods of enemies. Almost all of the Youth’s regiment gave their lives for this. During the Anthill attack in “Paths of Glory,” A company climbed up the trenches and charged: only to fall to shell explosions and enemy machine guns. Once company B saw that leaving the trenches meant absolute death, as it did for company A, they disobeyed commands to leave. Not only afraid, they didn’t want to sacrifice their lives for a pointless
War is typically fought between two sides, each with its own purpose and goal. Team effort is essential and even critical. How can one side succeed if it has its own internal conflict and battle? This is a hindrance to the whole company; thus weakening any chances of victory. To desire anything that contradicts victory is selfish. In “The Red Badge of Courage,” the Youth enlisted in war all for glory. He didn’t desire the victory of his company, but only the reputation of a hero. He became embarrassed for running from battle. There is …show more content…
A common theme in “The Red Badge of Courage” and “Paths of Glory” is the useless loss of lives. In the Civil War, 620,000 men lost their lives. Crane explains the dead bodies as “debris” on the ground, and portrays death as something the generals saw as numbers. Soldiers were dehumanized, and those who were the weakest and most fearful were easily disposed for missions such as sweeping the woods of enemies. Almost all of the Youth’s regiment gave their lives for this. During the Anthill attack in “Paths of Glory,” A company climbed up the trenches and charged: only to fall to shell explosions and enemy machine guns. Once company B saw that leaving the trenches meant absolute death, as it did for company A, they disobeyed commands to leave. Not only afraid, they didn’t want to sacrifice their lives for a pointless