Introduction
War is one of the most terrible things, which may happen to any nation and any human. In order to protect one another, people have to unite, plan, and be ready to fight any time. Lots of authors created numerous works in order to represent what a challenge people faced during wars, and one of them was Timothy Findley. Timothy Irving Frederick Findley, also known by his nickname Tiffy or just Tiff was one of the most popular novelists and playwrights of Canada.
His works and his unbelievable ideas impressed the readers all over the world. The Wars, The Last of the Crazy People, and Not Wanted on the Voyage – these are his best novels, which any person should know. The Wars is a story about one Canadian officer during the times of World War I, however, its titles hides much more captivating points, which have to be taken into consideration. The title of the story, The Wars, is not that simple and represents two different types of war, which are inherent to people: the war that happens on the battlefield, and the war that happens in side of each character in the story.
Main Body
Without any doubts, any war symbolizes some destructions and changes, which considerably influence each person. In The War, each character was affected by war somehow. Both men and women wanted to believe that the war they participated in could not frustrate the future of their generations, and that their children could forgive their parents all those mistakes, which caused that war. “I doubt we’ll ever be forgiven. All I hope is – they’ll remember we were human beings.” (Findley, 184)
However, during wars, people hardly think about someone else: their first purpose is to save their own lives and the lives of their relatives only. In spite of the fact that people truly believe and try to prove that safe future is their purpose, I still believe that people cannot care about the others more than about themselves, specially during the times of war. Wars demonstrate people’s best and worst qualities. Wars change each life, and Juliet d’Orsey, who envies his sister and loves Robert Ross, serves as a good example of how war can change human nature. (Findley, 220) Wars make people fight against other people, and wage wars even with their souls.
One of the first meanings of the title lies in the idea of the struggle or even a war that happens inside of every human being. People believe in something and have certain preferences in this life, however, in order to achieve some purposes, they can easily change these preferences, forget about their faith, and use any methods to gain the necessary recognition. This is why such type of inner war that happens with any person is one of the major themes, Findley wanted to point out in his novel and represent in the title.
“People can only be found in what they do.” (Findley, 7) To my mind, these are one of the most significant words in the whole story, which help to analyze and comprehend the actions of Robert Ross. Wars, which are inherent to Ross, have several directions: his personal thoughts and beliefs; his family; and his duties. Findley presents a character, who always tries to act sincerely in the situations of any kind.
However, the times make Ross take the actions, which he could not comprehend. When Robert realizes that war should not be ended with deaths only, he cannot forgive himself his actions, when he killed an innocent. In fact, Ross is one of those characters in the novel, who represents both good and bad qualities, inherent to human nature. The war, he participate in makes him to the things, which he will never do in a normal life.
For example, Robert starts thinking about prostitutes and doing different terrible things with them. However, at the same time, Robert represents as a person, who can be a good friend, and who is ready to help and support. When Robert helps Harris, he demonstrates another truth that, even during the times of war, it is possible to think about other people and provide them with the necessary help. Ross died “obscure by violence” (Findley, 7) and became a real hero, who made everything possible not to forget about his ideals in spite of all those betrayal and despair, his wars caused.
Wars may help people to comprehend the essence of many good and bad things. When people have no choice, but concentrate on their survival only, they get more chances to grasp what this life is all about. People used to think that war brings only destructions and grief; however, it is high time to consider details, be ready to learn and improve personal attitudes to various things, and find out that “honor came and stood in the door.” (Findley, 183) The Wars help to realize that struggles and fights may not cause deaths. Wars, which happen inside of any person, can be much more serious than wars, which happen between nations.
Of course, wars bring certain changes into lives and make people look at the same situations and things in different ways. Some people are ready to these changes and survive after the war; some people are too weak to go against and prove something, this is why they die or hide; and some people have enough powers not only to survive, but also to become heroes, help other people cope with all those difficulties, wars prepare, and be free. (Findley, 91)
Conclusion
Timothy Findley presented a wonderful story about how wars could influence human nature, change people’s preferences, and make them appreciate every minute in this life. The title of this novel makes the reader think about war’s essence and its types. It is certainly wrong to believe that war is something that causes deaths and happens between nations only. Wars may be also inherent to human beings and destroy them from inside. When the person should change something in order to achieve the necessary purpose, he/she starts a kind of inside war, where it is significant to break some personal rules.
It is not that easy, and Robert Ross demonstrates how personal war gets mix up with World War, and shows that its consequences are unpredictable. It is possible to become a hero and gain recognition among people, but, at the same time, lose close people and even own life. Is any war worth all these losses? Timothy Findley gave a wonderful answer in The Wars and helped the reader comprehend the essence of this life properly.
Works Cited
Findley, Timothy. The Wars. Markham: Penguin, 1996.