[lit-ideas] Re: [Fwd: Re: The Soldier as Sacrificial Victim]
- From: Eric Yost <mr.eric.yost@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 11 Aug 2005 01:01:35 -0400
Any suggestions as to why the soldier is historically so attractive?
---
Lots of suggestions but no definite thesis.
1) The soldier protects the families in one's group or nation from
being slaughtered or raped by soldiers from other groups or nations.
2) Following a code of discipline and duty, the soldier exhibits an
intensity that is often missing in ordinary peaceful life. (Consider
the leaf-hidden code of the samurai, and its modern treatment in
Robert Stone's novel, _Dog Soldiers_.)
3) The soldier is simply an alpha-male, and in a patriarchal
society, alpha-males get all the attention and respect.
4) It's in the interest of a society to valorize its soldiers since
a society needs a lot of them to maintain borders and mount a
credible defense against invasion.
5) Soldiers are not uniformly treated with respect. Consider Hasek's
_The Good Soldier Svejk_ or the "Miles Gloriosus" of Plautus. Bad
soldiers are often held up for more ridicule than nonsoldiers.
Remembering what Zorro did to Sergeant Garcia,
Eric
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