English Literature

Effective time management is the most important factor for succeeding in life. This is because it minimizes chances of loosing success opportunities in our day-to-day activities. This also saves time, allowing one to do more each day. Surprisingly enough however, effectively managing my time has been a major concern in my life. What with attending classes, doing and submitting assignments on time, being punctual in meetings, name them most times I am a victim of poor timing. Nevertheless, just as the common saying goes, habit is next to nature. Therefore, by repeatedly engaging in effective timing practices, I can sufficiently improve on my timing ability.

The first practice is ensuring prior planning of each day. By having a to-do list, I will be able to accomplish more in timing. This requires me to keep schedule of planned activities as a way of minimizing crash of plans during last minutes. Daily tasks should be categorized based on priority, both in urgency and importance, to avoid wastage of time and energy on less important tasks while neglecting the important ones. There is thus need to say no to nonessential activities.

Commitment to a task is equally important. To accomplish a quality job, I might need more time at first. However, such a time is better than the time it could take me to correct errors committed because of failure to allocate the necessary time for doing quality work. Divide and execute can help in quick completion of big and time consuming tasks. Lastly, there is great need for evaluating how I spend my daily time. With a dairy record, I will be able to identify and thus rectify any barrier to realizing effective timing.

There are concurrent themes running through each of these four stories  Hawthornes Rappaccinis Daughter and The Birthmark, and Edgar Allan Poes The Fall of the House of Usher and the Tell-Tale Heart. Some of the themes are the unhappiness of ones inner life, and the havoc one wreaks on ones outer life. This mirroring is present in all of these stories. In Poes Fall of the House of Usher, gloom and fungi grow on the walls of a house, and are reflected in the water of the lake. The heaviness of the gloom, and the heaviness of the water and the walls provide the perfect backdrop for the inner unhappiness of Roderick. The man on the brink believes his sister to be dead, yet when the narrator finds out she is still alive, we question the veracity of the outer gloom, and start to consider it is Rodericks madness which has thus transformed his surroundings.  In the Tell Tale Heart, the narrator is very unreliable, sinking into and out of madness. Sometimes he is lucid enough to tell his story, and other times we must take his word for what he observes, namely the evil eye. The evil eye is, again, a projection of madness, and a lens through which we distort the world when we are insane. The insistence of sanity by the obviously deranged man is akin to the insistence of the death of the sister by the insane brother. The evil eye is responsible for the narrators view of the world, of his paranoia and delusions, while the metaphorical evil eye of Rodericks insanity changes the very landscape of the narrators experience.

We come to Hawthornes The Birthmark, where a man is obsessed (a sure quality of madness) with making his wife aesthetically perfect. When she falls ill and dies as a result of the potion he has mixed to aid her in this endeavor, he sees the true horror of what he has done. By viewing her through a distorted lens of an obsessed lover who is concerned with what others think, he decides to play God and rid her of her human markings. Aylmers evil eye views his wife as imperfect, just as Rodericks evil eye conjures a pall over his surroundings, just as the Tell Tale Hearts paranoid narrator feels persecuted by an evil eye. In the final story, a man tries to make his daughter into a perfect rare flower, even though this entailed poisoning her. When Giovanni falls in love with her, the landscape of love is slowly ruined by the poison of deadly perfection. The evil eye of perfection ravages Beatrice, and when Giovanni produces an antidote and presents it to her as a way to live free of the poison, Beatrice dies. A life poisoned cannot be made whole, except through death. Madness distorts everything it touches, and it is no less mad to challenge Gods perfection as it is to murder and lie.

Charles Dickens novel Hard Times is sharp commentary on the values and practices of English society in the nineteenth century.  Dickens tackles a number of important issues in his novel, including education and the public good.  In the novel, the hypocrisies of the culture are exposed.  Using the characters of Gradgrind, Bounderby and Cecilia, Dickens exposes the potential harm of blind obedience to a particular set of values or philosophy.  While Gradgrind and Bounderby reflect the dangers of educational dogmatism and moralistic expediency, Cecilia Jupes character symbolizes the triumph of the human spirit and the power of the individual imagination and intelligence.

Hard Times takes a critical view of how the poor were treated in England at the time.  English society was highly regimented at the time, and the social classes were clearly defined.  There was, however, a great amount of change and innovation during this period as well.  Many towns, like the novels fictional setting of Coketown, were transformed by the industrial revolution and experienced an economic transformation.  The success of the mill allows a character like Bounderby to ascend the social ladder and influence his community.

The school where Gradgrind teaches is an important example of how Bounderbys influence is felt by the town.  In many respects, Gradgrinds teaching methods seem to be informed by mechanical processes at the towns mill rather than a genuine desire to impart knowledge.  In the opening sequence of the book, Gradgrind expounds on his philosophy in a voice that is described as being, inflexible, dry and dictatorial.  At the beginning of the novel, Gradgrind believes that there is only one objective in education, as well as life itself.  He tells his assembled students  In this life, we want nothing but Facts, sir nothing but Facts (p. 8).  The students are described as a little vessels . . . ready to have imperial gallons of facts poured into them until they were full to the brim (p.8).  This description provides the reader with important insight into how the role and function of education is understood by Gradgrind and his supporters.  Learning, rather than being a lifelong process fueled by curiosity and personal growth, is a finite exercise that is complete once the vessel has been filled to the brim.  In Gradgrinds classroom, there is room only for facts.  The limitations of this approach are demonstrated by Cecilia Jupes failure to describe a horse.  After grilling Cecilia on her fathers occupation, Gradgrind demands that she provide a definition of a horse.  In the text, we learn that she is alarmed by this request.

Gradgrind, however, misinterprets this alarm as ignorance.  He states  Girl number twenty unable to define a horse . . . Girl number twenty possessed of no facts in reference to the commonest of animals (p. 11).  It is clear to the reader that Cecilia Jupe, by virtue of her upbringing, is not only well aware of what a horse is but also likely to possess greater insight and knowledge of the animal than most of her peers.  Yet she is labeled as a failure, because she cannot produce a factual description of the animal on demand.  It is clear that education as it is defined in towns school is somewhat limited.  The definition provided by her fellow student Bitzer may be factually accurate, but it is unlikely to be of any great use to anyone who wants to truly understand the animal and its nature.  

Josiah Bounderby is another character who privileges facts over so-called fancy.  Throughout the novel, he takes great pains to establish his reputation not only as a self-made man but a sensible plain-spoken one.  He thoroughly rejects the imagination.  Near the end of the novel, he tells Gradgrind
I know the bricks of this town, and I know the works of this town, and I know the chimneys of this town, and I know the smoke of this town, and I know the Hands of this town.  I know em all pretty well.  Theyre real.  When a man tells me anything about imaginative qualities, I always tell that man, whoever he is, that I know what he means.  He means turtle-soup and venison, with a gold spoon, and that he wants to be set up with a coach and six. (p. 316)

In comparing the bricks and mortar of the town over the more subjective forms of knowledge, Josiah privileges his viewpoint over all others.  Furthermore, Josiahs privileging of reality over the more tenuous elements of supposition and fancy becomes ironic, since much of his life is based on lie.  He fabricates a history for himself that is a fanciful as any childs invention.  Ultimately, Josiahs supposed preference for reality and fact ultimately turns out to be hypocritical.  He twists the facts to suit his own purposes.  At the conclusion of the above-noted speech, Josiah justifies his abandonment of Gradgrinds daughter by saying that she expects fripperies and luxuries like turtle-soup and gold spoons.  He abjures all responsibility and tells Gradgrind if this is what his daughter expects then Gradgrind, as her father, can provide it for her.  Ironically, it is the dissolution of this marriage that brings about in part Gradgrinds emotional and intellectual awakening.

Cecilia Jupe emerges as one of the novels most sympathetic characters.  Not only is she kind and good, but she also possesses a straightforward and sensible view of the world.  She is the only character who seems to possess any moral authority, as evidenced by her ability to shame James Harthouse into behaving like a decent human being.  In sharp contrast to her fellow classmates Thomas Junior and Louise Gradgrind who later falter in spite of having succeeded in the school environment, Cecilia Jupe leaves school yet still leads a meaningful life.  Thomas Junior thrives in school and takes the teachings and philosophy espoused by his father to heart.  Although he has all the outward signs of being a success, Thomas Junior remains a deeply selfish character.  In comparison, Cecilia Jupe, who appears by all external measures to be his social inferior, is the one person who makes the most significant contribution to the Gradgrind family.  She alone understands the destructive potential Harthouse holds not only for Louise but the family as well.  She is the one who sends him away, telling Harthouse  You may be sure, sir, you will never see her again as long as you live (302).  Unlike many of the other characters who use their detached intellectualism to justify and rationalize their behavior, Cecilia is able to distinguish right from wrong.

In many respects, Dickens novel is an indictment of the morality of his time.  He recognized the hypocrisy that surrounded him. The Bounderby character is a criticism of the countless individuals who profited during this period at the expense of others.  Dickens abjures Bounderby and other other like him for their lack of compassion and social responsibility.  In the novel, he skewers the lies and justifications this group of people develops in order to rationalize their own selfishness and harmful behavior.  Similarly, Dickens attacks another group of people using the character of Gradgrind.  In the novel, Dickens is highly critical of those who adhere dogmatically to philosophies of education and knowledge.  He satirizes these theorists by exposing the limitations of such behavior, using the example of Gradgrind.  Cecilia emerges as Dickens heroine however, this is not because of her wealth, her status or her philosophy.  Ultimately, it is both her imagination and her emotion that redeem Cecilias character.  Although she is disadvantaged both in her upbringing and education, Cecilia is the novels emotional center, because she acts without guile or motive.  Through this character, Dickens proves that our emotion and imagination are often what redeems us as human beings.  

Reaction Range (LIST)
According to the Reaction Range concept, the genetically determined behavior of an individual is influenced by the existing environment. In addition, the environment can influence an individuals behavior depending on a persons genetic predispositions (DEFINE).

If two people with different genetic makeup are put into the same environment, one will respond differently from the other, or otherwise, they may also respond similar when put into different environments. The concept of Reaction Range also means that two people with same genetic predispositions will respond differently when put into different environments (DESCRIBE).

For example, Samantha is born with a normal genetic level for music ability, while Victoria has a higher than normal genetic level. If they will be enrolled by their parents in the same music class, Victoria will most likely excel than Samantha. However, they will be put in different environments aside from the music class, their reactions might be similar. Victoria, for instance, is enrolled at an arts class, while Samantha took up swimming lessons, both of them may respond similar, since they have no genetic predispositions for environments in arts and swimming.

On the other hand, if both Samantha and Victoria are born with average genetic level for music ability, both of them will have different reactions in different environments. If Samantha grows up in a musically deprived environment, her musical abilities will become lower than average, and if Victoria grows up in a highly-enriched musical environment, chances are, she will develop above normal musical abilities (EXAMPLE).

Two writers offer an insightful interpretation concerning the historical heritage and cultural identity of Native Americans as referenced from their personal experience. In Indian Cartography, Deborah Miranda describes indigenous struggles as referenced through the apperception of her father, whom throughout his life, purportedly witnessed a tumultuous reality, subject to American colonization. Poignant, personalized and reflective, she establishes an immediate rapport with the Native American challenges, elucidated by the organic experience of her father during his young, precocious childhood. Conversely, Itch Like Crazy written by Wendy Rose, captures a generalized overview of Native American culture as witnessed from her surrounding experiences with others. While both poems assess cultural identity in relation to indigenous struggles, each one, Indian Cartography, a story about family survival against personal difficulties, and Itch Like Crazy, ones personal narrative depicting the tribulations of Native Americans, offers their own insightful perspective, independent and innovative from the other.

Mirandis Indian Cartography journeys Native American experience through the eyes of her father, whom at a premature age, witnessed unprecedented adversity, which became immediately familiar, like family blood lines, when, tragedy greeted him like an old unpleasant relative, (Miranda, Deborah, 133). From the beginning, he learned to swim the hard way, across silver scales, and persevere (Miranda, Deborah, 133). His history became personified as a family connection through his psychological experience. Indeed, rather than, descending into declivity, or drowning by a displaced river fraught with dark water, he transcended his perennial predicament, floating on his face, hopeful of the shadows that embody people he once knew, closing on the stories of our home, (Miranda, Deborah, 133). Mirandis poem, like Rose in Itch like Crazy, underscores the perseverance of Native American culture. However, Mirandi features indigenous struggle within the historical context of her fathers natural, individual experience, who overcame interminable personal turmoil. Hence, she connects to readers directly with transparent clarity through the metaphors of his unconventional journey, overcoming persistent prejudice, discrimination, and personal oppression. Furthermore, Mirandis allusion to family and familiar circumstances offers a direct contrast from Rose, who describes with devastation of strangers for whom she connects (Rose, Wendy, 135).

From a less organic interpretation, Wendy Welsh acknowledges the robust resilience of her people, who rebound, and rise from their death (Rose, Wendy, 135). Rather than reflecting on her own individual experience, or anyone immediately related to her, she presents a more generalized, universal analysis that assesses the historical narrative of cultural identity, witnessed through others. For example, she juxtaposes a comparison between the eyes of nearly everyone and Columbus, referring to Christopher Columbus. An incisive metaphor, she apparently perceives the Native American culture, as this group of explorers, embarking on their own expedition to achieve success in history (Rose, Wendy, 135). She notices these problems existing among, the fingers of every hand, as voicesamong strangers, summon her attention (Rose, Wendy, 135).

Two writers present a polyphony of perspectives regarding the personal struggles that embodied Native American culture. Whereas Deborah Mirandi explains the challenges witnessed by Native American culture through her fathers lens, Wendy Rose pursues a more estranged position, whereby she establishes connection through others who share her cultural experience.

The streetcar named Desire bangs through the Quarter, up one old narrow street and down another.  It connects to another car called Cemetery, and from there one proceeds to a part of New Orleans called Elysian Fields.  This tells us something about life.  When people live, they do everything because they desire.  It keeps them moving.  Then it kills them, or maybe they just die, and then its on to the Elysian  Fields, the name the Greeks called their equivalent of Heaven.  In Tenessee Williams play, the Elysian Fields in which Blanche DuBois finds herself is anything but Paradise, and the souls she finds there are far from blessed.

Blache DuBois is a relic of the Old South, an ageing, genteel woman who likes alcohol and soft light because they take the edge off things.  She arrives at her sister Stellas home in New Orleans with a vague story about how she left her teaching job for the sake of her health, and it isnt long before she upsets the household and its lord and master, Stanley Kowalski.  Stanley is everything that Blanche is not, everything that she fears and distrusts.  He is the son of Polish parents, a factory worker, a straight talker who isnt above hammering on the door and yelling at a lady if she takes too long in the bath. If Blanche embodies the dead dreams of the feudal plantation era, Stanley represents the New South, fast-paced, industrialized, unsentimental.  It would be too easy to dwell on the differences between these two characters and the reasons why the ways of one would get on the other ones nerves, or to say that one is sure to be destroyed while the other will do well in the modern age.  Maybe it would be better instead to explore the idea that while Blanche and Stanley might appear to be worlds apart, they are actually only two faces of the same coin.  

Blanche comes to New Orleans burdened with a trunk and the news that Belle Reve, the plantation where she and Stella were raised, has been lost forever.  But where another woman would have come wailing or maybe fighting mad, Blanche waltzes in and proceeds to fill the Kowalski flat with illusions.  Indeed, she admits later on that a womans charm is 50 illusion (Scene 2, p. 167).   Her refusal to deal with the loss of the plantation in a more realistic manner might be because of the way she has been brought up to the ideals of the chivalric code.  There was chivalry in the Old South as it was organized a little like the world was in the time of knights and damsels-in-distress.  There were poor people who farmed the land, and they were protected by the land-owning lords.  The landowners in turn were answerable before God for the welfare of their women, children and servants.  Everything depended on people fitting into their proper places.  If they did their duty there would be harmony.  If slaves worked, they would be fed.  If ladies were discreet and pretty and obedient to their husbands and fathers, they would be protected from vulgarity and the harsh necessities of life.  If the plantation owners and their sons took care of their women, children and slaves, they would be rewarded with the love of these weaker ones, the respect of their peers, and the blessings of the Almighty.  The ordered, chivalrous ways were supposed to result in a world where there was truth, beauty and goodness, one that Blanche tries to keep alive by clinging to its outward trappings  fine clothes, refined talk, and being conscious of things that just arent done in polite society.

Stanley on the other hand is the son of immigrants but an American himself.  If the Old South was about respecting the proper order of things where some are born to be lowly and some are born to rule, his ethics are geared towards upward struggle.  Not that Stanley actually thinks that he is beneath people like Blanche.  The struggle spoken of here is one where the limits from olden times - like social status - are removed, so that there is the idea that if a man only works hard enough and looks out after his best interests, then he will succeed.  The measure of success is not the achievement of a pretty, genteel world, but a world where no man or woman or child has to go hungry and there are equal opportunities for all.  This new way of thinking of course takes into account the price that people in the Old South paid for their orderly world  the suffering of the majority so that the privileged few could enjoy beauty and good things.

These contrasting world views are apparent in Blanche and Stanleys attitudes toward material things like property, as well as to those that are intangible, like human relationships.

When Blanche talks about the fall of Belle Reve, she recites a litany of deaths, including a particularly harrowing story of how their hugely pregnant kinswoman could not be made to fit into a casket.  The loss of the plantation to her is represented by the lives that the war took away.  As relatives die one by one, so is Belle Reve sold bit by bit to pay for their funerals.  When asked exactly how the plantation was lost in business terms however, she finds it hard to explain.  This in turn, is what Stanley finds hard to believe.  Being a man of the world who looks out for number one, his first instinct is to accuse Blanche of lying.  The ugly side of an equal-opportunity world is the thought that no one is above suspicion.  To justify his intrusion into the financial affairs of the DuBois sisters, he even invokes Louisianas Napoleonic code (Scene 2, p. 163), which says that whatever a woman owns is also the property of her husband.  Ironically, the Napoleonic code itself is a holdover from more chivalrous times.  If Blanche holds the painful pinch of poverty beneath the pain of losing her loved ones, Stanley sees this sentiment as a kind of act put on to distract interested parties from what to him is the pressing issue   Where is the money

While at the Kowalskis Blanche gains a suitor  Stanleys friend, Mitch.  Mitch is a little nave, and Blanche plays the part of damsel-in-distress to gain his sympathies.  True, the man isnt very manly, isnt too handsome and still lives with his mother.  Still, in Blanches world, there must be a man.  It doesnt matter if there must be paper shades over the lights, if she must lie about her age or her past or anything else.  It fits into the dream to have a man worshipping her, putting her on a pedestal in the old-fashioned way.  It is nothing like Stella and Stanleys relationship, where Stella admits that there are things that happen, between a man and a woman, in the dark, that makes everything else seem unimportant.  For Stanley though, it is no romance when a relationship is built on lies, and so he promptly digs up the truth about Blanche  how she prostituted herself to survive before becoming involved with a minor and losing her job.  Mitch is enlightened but is devastated as Blanche hysterically tries to hold together the illusion that is falling apart (Scene 9, p. 221).

But when all is said and done, Blanche and Stanley, the Old South and the New South, are not so very different after all.  Blanche struggled tooth-and-nail, as bravely and bitterly as any man, to protect her family and her heritage, just as Stanley and his fellow laborers struggle, though less dramatically, for a chance of three square meals a day for themselves and their families.  If Blanche believes in beauty and goodness, so Stanley believes in equality and labors sure reward.  It might be argued that both are utopian ideas that are far from reality.

Blanche fought passionately to preserve what she cared about, even if it meant the degradation of her body and the loss of her reputation.  Stanley also, for all his toughness, must stand tearing his shirt on the street and shouting Stella...Stella on a drunken night when his wife has deserted him (Scene 3, p. 179).  If Blanche gently succumbs to the hopeful delusion that a millionaire named Shep Huntleigh is about to carry her off on a grand cruise, then Stanley comes home after the birth of his first child brimming with good spirits because that weak little morsel of flesh is for him joy and hope.

When Stanley rapes Blanche it is not because he is an animal.  It is only the modern world realizing that it doesnt have all the answers, just as the old world didnt.  The thought is unbearable, so the New South must commit violence upon the Old South.  For after all, it isnt just Blanche who takes the streetcar named Desire, then hops on the one called Cemetery, to get to Elysian Fields  so does Stanley, and so must we all do.

One of the ruinous effects of human conflicts, war has a detrimental impact on the human society. War not only has an effect on the lives of the victims but also on the lives of soldiers fighting those wars. In the precarious and life threatening circumstances of war, human beings tend to behave in a contradictory manner. This contradictory behavior continues even when these soldiers return to civilian life. The negative effects of war on the soldiers prevent them from leading a normal civilian life. In some cases, even though the soldiers survive the war, they became victims of the manipulative politics played by their countries. The movie Breaker Morant by Bruce Beresford and the book Odysseus in America by Jonathan Shay focuses on this negative aspect of soldiers lives. The movie Breaker Morant depicts the trial of Australian Army officers, Harry Morant, Peter Handcock, and George Witton, who served Bushveldt Carbineers at the time of Second Boer War. In the book Odysseus in America, Shay, a psychiatrist, writes about the negative impact post-traumatic stress is having on the soldiers returned from Vietnam War. Both these works bring forth the damaging effect war has on the lives of soldiers through the portrayal of soldiers facing the problems of betrayal or post-traumatic stress.

Detrimental Effects of War
The movie Breaker Morant and the book Odysseus in America presents the various problems faced by the soldiers in course of the war, and even after the end of war. The movie Breaker Morant shows how the soldiers have to deal not only with their enemies but also with their superiors who exploit the soldiers to serve their own purposes. The movie revolves around the trial of Australian Army officers, Harry Morant, Peter Handcock, and George Witton who are facing the charges of murdering seven Boer prisoners. Morant is accused of leading these attacks on the Boer prisoners in retaliation, as Morant believed that his friend, Captain Hunt was murdered by the Boers. Harry Morant, who is also known as Breaker Morant and George Witton are also accused of killing Rev. Hesse, a German missionary. As the trial progress, it becomes evident that Morant, Handcock and Witton are victims of manipulative politics played by Britain, a country for which these soldiers risked their lives in the war. Morant, Handcock and Witton had killed the Boer prisoners because they were ordered to do so by their superiors. But as these orders were conveyed to them orally, they were unable to prove their innocence. Although Major Thomas, their defense lawyer tries hard to save Morant, Handcock and Witton from being executed, these soldiers are held guilty of the murder and awarded the death sentence.

The manner in which the trial is conducted proves that Morant, Handcock and Witton were utilized as scapegoats by Britain to achieve its political aims. The biased attitude of the prosecuting attorney and their witnesses shows that the trial was a charade, as Britain has already decided to execute these soldiers even before the commencement of the trial. In the end, Morant and Handcock are executed whereas Wittons death sentence is commuted to life imprisonment. The British army, which is supposed to protect the soldiers fighting from his side, plans to execute Morant and Handcock in spite of the fact that they were just fulfilling their duties as soldiers fighting for them. The negative effects of war on the lives of the soldiers are portrayed in the movie through the betrayal experienced by Morant, Handcock and Witton. The British army betrays these soldiers and executes them for murdering Boer prisoners even though these soldiers were ordered by their superiors to kill the Boer prisoners. Owing to the injustice meted out to them by the British army, Morant and Hancock lose faith in the existence of a divine power.  They are distrustful of everyone, for they come to regard all people around them to be their enemies. The politics involved in wars leads Morant and Hancock to their execution for the murders they had committed on the orders of the superiors. The political strategies of war bring an end to the lives of these soldiers and that also at the hands of the country for which they have fought in the war.

Even after the end of the war, the negative influence of war on the lives of the soldiers continues, as numerous soldiers suffer from post traumatic stress and find it difficult to lead a peaceful civilian life. The book Odysseus in America focuses on this detrimental effect of war on the lives of the soldiers. The author writes about the difficulties experienced by Vietnam War veterans in adjusting to the civilian life. The soldiers fighting in the war are so overwhelmed by their horrific experiences at the war that they engage in violent behavior even after they return to civilian lives. The book presents examples of numerous Vietnam veterans to bring forth the damaging effects the development of post traumatic stress has on the civilian lives of the soldiers. One such soldier, who finds it difficult to fit himself in the peaceful civilian life, is Bear Mercer. The horrifying war experiences haunt Bear and hinder him from assimilating in a life which is far different from one he led during the war. Now in nightmares and flashbacks the color of his blood, changing from bright red to almost black in his squad who crushed the dead mans chest with a boulder, drenching Bear with blood that squirted out of the severed neck arteries. (Shay 23). His mind is burdened with the guilt for carrying out the brutal killings during the war. His thinking is so influenced by his experiences at the war that his reaction to any incident in his civilian life, which is similar to the one in war, is identical. Any incompetence Bear encounters in civilian life arouses the same feelings of fear, rage, and grief. When he yanked his general supervisor at the post office across his own desk and screamed at him, he screamed exactly the same words he screamed at his incompetent CO. (Shay 25). Post traumatic stress also leads to the development of distrust in the war veterans. The war veterans look at the people around them with distrust.

The family lives of these war veterans are also affected owing to the various problems caused by post traumatic stress. Even in the matter of their careers, these war veterans find their work uninteresting compared to the combat duties they carried out during the war. Many, like Bear, who joined uniformed services quit or were fired after relatively short careers. Unlike Bear, some found civilian policing too boring authority relationships and apparently meaningless administrative tasks. (Shay 26). This book throws light on the fact that the detrimental effects of war on the soldiers is evident in every aspect of their lives  even after they return to the civilian lives owing to the development of post traumatic stress in the soldiers.

Conclusion
The movie Breaker Morant and the book Odysseus in America bring forth the detrimental effects war has on the lives of soldiers fighting those wars. The movie Breaker Morant shows how international politics involved in the war leads to the execution of three soldiers for a murder they have committed on the orders of their superiors. These soldiers became victims of betrayal by a country for whom they risked their lives in the war. The book Odysseus in America depicts the negative impact war experiences has on the soldiers even after returning to civilian lives through the portrayal of soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress. Both these works present the various kinds of difficulties and hardships encountered by soldiers during the war and even after end of the war.