Anthony Swofford
Jarhead (2003)
Author: Anthony Swofford
Genre: Nonfiction (Memoir/Military History)
Book Summary:
This is the autobiographical story of a Marine's experiences as a scout/sniper during The Gulf War, and how he became a jarhead. Through the use of flashbacks, the reader gains insight into the author's motivations for joining the Marines. As a child of a military family, the author feels the need to prove his manhood to his father and older brother. He also creates an idealized notion of the Corps as an exclusive and honorable organization. Swofford chronicles his time spent in boot camp, and through his indoctrination into the elite Surveillance and Target Acquisition Platoon (STA). When he is finally deployed to Saudi Arabia, as the U.S. prepares for war with the Iraqis, Swofford is filled with a mixture of feelings about what is in store for him and his fellow jarheads. The conflicting feelings of the absurdity of war, and his urge to fulfill his dreams of becoming a killer Marine, cause him to feel ambiguous about his situation and his station in life.
Geographical Setting: California, Michigan, Japan, The Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Greece, Ireland
Time Period: 1980s and early 1990s
Appeal Characteristics:
Jarhead, winner of the Pen/Martha Albrand Award for the Art of the Memoir (2004), is written in a very spare, Hemingwayesque prose style, which compliments the tone of bleakness that pervades the narrative. The story moves at a slow pace, but the reader will be compelled to discover how Swofford's psyche will fare through life in "the suck." As you would expect in a memoir, the main character is thoroughly developed. The back-stories of peripheral
characters, however, are limited. We only get to know these characters through Swofford's eyes, which gives the reader an even clearer understanding of his personality. Readers interested in the psychology of war, or the details of military life, should enjoy this book.
Read-alikes: Fans of Jarhead might also enjoy One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer, by Nathaniel C Fick. This is a candid, first-hand account of an officer's experiences during the Iraq War. The author focuses on the gritty reality of life in a combat zone. Generation Kill: Devil Dogs, Iceman, Captain America, and the New Face of American War, by Evan Wright, is a character-driven account of the First Reconnaissance Battalion Marines' first month of fighting in the Iraq War. Although this is written by an embedded reporter, Wright delivers the story from the perspective of the soldiers doing the fighting. The up close and personal reportage gives the reader an insider's view of the life of a Marine living on the frontlines. Shooter: The Autobiography of the Top-Ranked Marine Sniper, by Jack Coughlin, Casey Kuhlman, and Donald A. Davis, is the story of a twenty-year veteran Marine sniper, and his struggles with his bloody profession. This book will give the reader a window into psychological havoc caused by life behind the trigger. Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway, will give the reader a similar account of a soldier that becomes disenchanted with war. Though this book is fiction (and takes place in Italy during WWI), it is semi-autobiographical and is written in a laconic, brooding style of prose. Journey to the End of the Night, by Louis-Ferdinand Celine, also is a semi-autobiographical work of fiction about a soldier that discovers the absurdity of his endeavor. Although this book also takes place in a different time and place (France, WWI), the author focuses on the ultimate futility of war, and the meaninglessness of the casualties on either side.
Red Flags: Violence; profanity; sexual situations; drug and alcohol use
|top|
|
