Soldiers Dont Go Mad

Introduction

Soldiers Dont Go Mad by Charles Glass is a lot of things, but ultimately it is an in-depth examination of the psychological cost of war. The book itself is set against the backdrop of World War I (1914-18), and focuses on the experiences of soldiers who faced unimaginable horrors. The war resulted in the deaths of nearly 10 million soldiers and countless civilians and it ending up reshaping the world, leaving an enormous mark on those who lived through it. At the heart of Glasss book is the establishment of Craiglockhart War Hospital, which acted as a pioneer in terms of recognizing and seeking to treat the then only barely understood problem of shell shock. This was actually a term used back then to describe a problem now known as post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. The fact that doctors at the War Hospital could recognize this for what it was shows that people were aware of the mental toll caused by the devastating experiences of war. The very title of the book by Glass is ironic, of course. They irony of the title conveys the social expectation, which was likely somewhat prevalent during that time, that soldiers should be strong, tough, resilient, and gritty. Regardless of the traumas they endured, soldiers should be above all that. Not everyone believed such, thoughfor the Womens Movement in the early 20th century in the US certainly understood the toll of war on soldiers, which is why the Movement was initially anti-war (Kennedy, 1999). Nonetheless, this social expectation of toughness in soldiers is compared to the raw realities of mental anguish in Glasss book. The outcome is a strong statement about what it meant to address mental health. This paper analyzes the work, and examines how it fits into the larger historical context of United States history.

Central Elements

Central to Glass's narrative are the lives and works of two poets, who experienced the war directlyWilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon. Glass makes constant reference to their poetry and pain, and uses their stories and verses to convey an accurate but disturbing sense of what it is like to be a soldier in a conflict like WWI. In fact, the title actually comes from one of Sassoons own poems, Repression of War Experience. In that poem, Sassoon warns that soldiers dont go mad / unless they lose control of ugly thoughts (Glass, 2023). It is this battle to control ones thoughts that characterizes the mental health issue of shell shock or PTSD. Those soldiers who saw the blood and death and horror and personally experienced were the ones likely to have to deal with this mental struggle. And governments were often no help, as they did not understand the shock the soldiers went throughand some ended up being executed for cowardice, as Glass (2023) explains. But as Solomon (2023) points out in his review of the book, the frontline soldiers are the ones who suffer most: Government leaders remain masters of deception, while enormous numbers of human beings suffer the consequences. Interestingly enough, despite their anti-war sentiments evident in their poetry, both Owen and Sassoon did chose to return to the front lines during WWI. This decision actually reveals the level of pride and commitment soldiers took when it came to doing their dutybut also the effect of peer pressure, and personal conviction that many soldiers dealt with. It is more than...

…immense. The "Lost Generation" of American writerspeople like Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, would go on to write about the war's futility and the societal changes it brought about. Hemingways Farewell to Arms was one such book. Their works, much like Owen's and Sassoon's poetry, show a generation of men wondering what it was all about, why so much fighting and suffering had to take place. There is a distinct note of despair in Hemingways books, for instance. In Glasss book, however, there is some deeper understanding of what the experiences of soldiers was like in a real personal way.

The discussions on PTSD and the psychological toll of war in Glass's book are relevant to the US today as well, because the nation's involvement in the Ukraine conflict continues. The US is sending billions and billions of dollars along with war machines to help make sure the conflict continues. In the light of what Glass shows about PTSD and the suffering of ordinary soldiers, one would hope that US senators and representatives would consider this awful reality and try to find an alternative solution to the problem in Ukraine. More war does not sound like a great idea, considering the cost that it has on human life and mental health. Soldiers returning from war zones still experience PTSD and suicide rates still are high for many of these people. The challenges described by Glass still remain.

Conclusion

Through the lens of Craiglockhart War Hospital and the intertwined lives of poets Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen, the Soldiers Dont Go Mad by Charles Glass takes a good look at the trauma of warfare and the effects of PTSD. Overall, it is a powerful reflection of what soldiers endured in WWI but…