In the novel Birdsong written by Sebastian Faulks, and A Farewell To Arms by Ernest Hemingway, there are many forms of conflict presented. I’ll be looking at the way which Faulks and Hemingway present the conflicts in physical, social class and faith aspects in their novels.
The novel Birdsong is predominantly set in World War One and so presents a large amount of physical conflict. There are plenty of graphic accounts of physical conflict within World War One presented in the novel, such as injuries sustained from a gas attack, which was the new generation of modern warfare. A soldier who was injured during the gas attack depicted in the novel, had such severe injuries that “fluid lept from his flesh like some victorious spirit that had possessed him.”[1] This quotation truly highlights the horrors of war and presents physical conflict because it’s showing the inhumane impact war can have. Furthermore, this is presented through the use of personification in the phrase “fluid lept”[2]; this device makes the reader visualise the malice which soldiers were subject to. Faulks’ use of strong adjectives such as “huge, raw blisters”[3] which describe the effect of the new chemical warfare, help elaborate the physical conflict in the novel. The language used in Wilfred Owen’s “Dulce et Decorum Est” is similar to the language used by Faulks in Birdsong. Both texts include graphic, detailed language to highlight the catastrophic events in World War One; Faulks uses strong adjectives like “eyes were oozing”[4] similarly Owen uses phrases such as “gargling, choking, drowning”[5] and “froth corrupted.”[6] These phrases echo the thought that Faulks and Owen use similar language, and by doing this it creates a more realistic reading experience and illustrates the physical conflict in the novel further.
Hemingway wrote his novel based on his personal experiences fighting in World War One in 1918 when he volunteered for ambulance service in Italy. Hemingway himself was wounded during this time and so this is reflected in A Farewell To Arms. Similar to Birdsong, there are lots of graphic descriptions of physical conflict presented, one of which is where the main character, Henry, and another character, Passini, are injured. The physical devastation of war is clearly shown in this section because of the clear-cut words used. “Pulled and twisted…got my legs loose finally”[7] accentuates the awful situations that soldiers would be put in, furthermore “one leg was gone and the other was held by tendons”[8] is such a gruesome phrase and is extremely clear that nothing else has to be said in order to picture what Hemingway wants the reader to picture; this is also shown in the phrase “the stump twitched and jerked”[9] as it offers an evident picture as to what would happen during war – people losing limbs. One might agree with Barron Laycock that Hemingway’s “artful use of language is what makes this novel so real”[10]. Faulks uses more graphic language in Birdsong than Hemingway does in A Farewell To Arms. One might argue that Faulks doesn’t need to use this exaggerated language in order to present physical conflict in the novel because Hemingway has managed to depict it very well in without this harsh, explicit language.
Faulks presents social class conflict one way through the letters written by the soldiers. The use of epistolary in the novel helps to give voices to the lower classes and not just the upper classes as the “literary heritage of World War One is predominantly middle class”[11]. Birdsong doesn’t focus on the story of upper class characters like Azaire or Berard, it gives voices to the soldiers who worked unendingly and deserve to have their story told. Faulks shows that he is somewhat an egalitarian and goes against stereotypical publishing because he writes letters for all the soldiers of all social classes before they are about to go over the top for the Battle of the Somme. The letters show the variances between the soldiers class – Tipper’s letter has bad literacy where it says “That fellow Byrne I told you about, he come up and told me not to worry” which would suggest that he was of a lower class as the lower classes would typically not have much of an education compared to upper class children; Weir’s is written very formally and most likely suggests that he is from a more privileged, upper class background, such as where he says “Mother and Father”. The letters of the soldiers add to novel and shows that soldiers “not only had faces, but voices”[12]
In A Farewell To Arms however, other social classes are not presented in such a way as they are in Birdsong. The carabinieri, the Italian military police, were somewhat lower class. In A Farewell To Arms, they are presented as though they have lots of authority but actually had less power than perceived. This shows social class conflict because they were fighting to have higher status and they did this by killing people in the army, who were deserting , to show their power. They were hated by many for this exact reason and this is shown through the character of Passini, who “spat on the floor”[13] when they were mentioned. The carabinieri believed they had lots of authority and shown this way by telling Henry, after he’s hit one of them in the face, “don’t you know you can’t touch an officer?”[14] This shows the power struggle in Italy during World War One and the social class conflict. This wasn’t the only power struggle happening, it was happening between men and women regarding the changing attitudes towards women. One might argue that Hemingway “addresses the many changes happening during this era with brevity”[15] to reflect the class conflict.
Conflict of faith and beliefs is also presented in Birdsong by Faulks. There is conflict between losing faith and then turning to it at a time of need. A character who shows loss of faith in the novel during the war is Horrocks. Horrocks “pulled the silver cross from his chest and hurled it from him.”[16] We know that he lost his faith because “Jack knew what had died in him.”[17] The fact that Horrocks was wearing a silver cross suggests that he was religious pre-war and the horrendous events he’s been subject to see have caused him to lose his faith. Furthermore, it shows that even those who had faith pre-war and appear to be very dedicated, can lose it. The war is so appalling and has such a profound impact on people that it can take away something that they value. One could argue that the war brings about a stage where people go through “miracles and dangers”[18] and is a crucial test of faith; in most cases, this “test of faith”[19] is what eventually leads to soldiers, like Horrocks, losing faith altogether. Jonathan H. Ebel says that following the Great War, the number of religious people “decreased on a global scale”[20] which shows that there was a struggle to maintain faith during conflict.
Similarly, in A Farewell To Arms, Hemingway presents conflict of faith. This is shown one way through the priest. In A Farewell To Arms, religion is something to be embarrassed about; if you’re religious it’s considered a joke, shown where the priest says “I am still a great joke”.[21] In contrast, in Birdsong it is not frowned upon to be religious. Throughout the novel, there aren’t many religious characters presented. There are lots of references to the priest being tired, “I noticed his face looked very tired”[22], which could suggest that religion during World War One was becoming very tired and phasing out; societies may have been becoming more secularised. To support this, this is shown through Catherine and Henry’s relationship in the novel – having a child out of wedlock. This is similar to Birdsong because Stephen has a relationship with a married woman, Isabelle, and she falls pregnant with his child. You could link this to nihilism – that God is dead and we have killed him – people’s lack of interest in religion and God has led to secularisation. One might agree with Brianne Terry that “Hemingway doesn’t overly focus on religion, he is reflecting the time the novel was set and he does it brilliantly.”[23]
Conflict of faith where people turn to it in a time of need is presented one way through the character of Stephen. Stephen committed a sin due to him sleeping with a married woman, Isabelle, and eventually realises that “this will not be allowed in the wider context”[24] of his life. During the time that the novel was set, societies were becoming more secularised and so not everyone was bound to a religion; this suggests why Stephen wasn’t religious and Isabelle was. Stephen goes to a cathedral to try and find some sort of peace however “the chilly, hostile building offered little comfort”[25]. Stephen, only turns to religion as a last resort and needs to feel at peace with his actions; he is one of those “non-believers finding their faith in fear”[26]. He might not be religious, but even those who are religious and commit sins, will go to a cathedral, for example, to feel excused for their wrongdoing like Stephen tries to. Even a nurse, who we don’t know whether she was religious or not, “turned her face to the heavens”[27] when she needed God’s help in the worst of situations. It suggests that people turn to religion when they feel it is the last resort and need comfort not only for others but also in themselves. One could argue that soldiers, like Stephen, turn to religion because it’s all they have left. However, “many soldiers believe they can become invincible as long as they keep faith[28]” but even these eventually lose faith and begin to break down psychologically.
In A Farewell To Arms, this is also shown through the character of Henry, who throughout the novel isn’t religious, but when his partner, Catherine, is dying, he prays and somehow tries to get some comfort from religion. This is very similar to Birdsong when Stephen turns to religion in a time of need. Henry, at the end of the novel, is in a situation where his partner, Catherine, is going to die. Henry “knew she was going to die”[29] and deals with it by turning to faith – he said “I prayed”[30] and then says, “Oh, God, please don’t let her die.”[31] This echos the idea that people turn to religion for comfort when there’s nothing else left – in A Farewell To Arms, Henry’s son was born stillborn and his wife was about to die at the end of the novel, showing that he had nothing else left. Henry “is frightened by the thought of being left alone without the one thing that matters to him and so he prays repetitively”[32] to come to terms with what’s happening.
To conclude, Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks and A Farewell To Arms by Ernest Hemingway both present conflict in physical, social class and faith aspects of the novel. Faulks tends to use much more harsh, graphic language in order to present his work however Hemingway uses more reserved language, but clear-cut in order to present his work. Conflict of faith is presented similarly and differently; they both show a character turning to religion in a time of need however in Birdsong it is seen as a common thing to be religious but in A Farewell To Arms it frowned upon if you are religious.
[1] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.185
[2] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.185
[3] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.186
[4] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.187
[5] Owen, W. Dulce et Decorum Est.
[6] Owen, W. Dulce et Decorum Est.
[7] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.51
[8] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.52
[9] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.52
[11] Wheeler, P. Birdsong, a Readers Guide. (London: Continuing International:2002) pp.48-60
[12] Edward Johnson, “Good Reads” review. 2013
[13] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.46
[14] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.197
[16] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.230
[17] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.230
[18] Fussell, P. The Great War and Modern Memory. (London: Oxford Paperbacks: 2000)
[19] Fussell, P. The Great War and Modern Memory. (London: Oxford Paperbacks: 2000)
[20] Ebel, J H. Faith in the Fight: Religion and the American Soldier in the Great War. (New Jersey:Princeton University Press: 2010)
[21] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.63
[22] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.63
[23] Terry, B. http://www.amazon.com/Farewell-To-Arms-Ernest-Hemingway/product-reviews/0684801469/ref=cm_cr_pr_btm_link_56?ie=UTF8&pageNumber=56&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=byRankDescending
[24]Wheeler, P. Birdsong, a Readers Guide. (London: Continuing International:2002) p.43
[25] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.71
[26] Wheeler, P. Birdsong, a Readers Guide. (London: Continuing International:2002) p.43
[27] Faulks, S. Birdsong (1994:Vintage Books:London) p.188
[28] Wheeler, P. Birdsong, a Readers Guide. (London: Continuing International:2002) p.45
[29] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.291
[30] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.291
[31] Hemingway, E. A Farewell To Arms (2004:Arrow Books:London) p.291
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