Ok readers- I'll let you in on a secret. I may have a comic book or two floating around my room. Among them is The Other Side, a five-issue series that came out in 2006 about the Vietnam War. Our class discussion of soldiers' experiences during war reminded me of these comics, as they really focused on the psychological aspect of both a Vietcong soldier and an American following their deployment and respective death and life afterwards.
It was really an interesting asterisk (that term has become a class-cliché at this point, I gotta think of another way to phrase that) to the regular portrayal of Vietnam that we're used to. It was gritty and realistic, similar to Saving Private Ryan in that respect, yet in showing both sides it also reminded me of Clint Eastwood's Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima. As both stories were meaningfully juxtaposed throughout the book, both soldiers' lives, though drastically different, appear similar as they both undergo the horrors of war. It was a powerful read, and I highly reccommend it (and I'm sure you can find it on Amazon.com if a comic book store is too scary).
The picture included was a scene from the comic, and the poem his helmet is referring to is a famous piece by John Donne, which I'll leave you with to ponder for yourself, comment with your own thoughts on it's meaning in reference to the context of the war.
DEATH be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think'st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,
Rest of their bones, and soules deliverie.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,
And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,
And better then thy stroake; why swell'st thou then;
One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.
3 comments:
I'm very curious about this graphic novel after reading your post. I think it's interesting that you compare it to both Saving Private Ryan and Eastwood's pair of films. A story that shows both sides of a situation but are still true to the real life story are rare these days. The poem is very powerful, I feel, especially when you hear about dying proudly for our country.
This sounds like a really interesting graphic novel that I want to check out. Check out my blog, because I recently blogged about Watchmen, another politically relevant graphic novel. If you haven't read it yet, you should, even if you've seen the movie. I think the two are similar in that they aren't just the traditional comic book, and they give a different perspective of war than we're used to.
Great discussion guys. Michael B. -- can you bring in that graphic novel? Maybe I can photocopy a few pages and we can use it next week in class.
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