The War Prayer by Mark Twain - Literature review Example

Mark Twain, the of the literary piece, “The War Prayer”, captures an extra-ordinary inner-strength to voice out his humanistic analysis about war and patriotism, such that challenges distorted non-humanist perspective about being a patriot. Mark Twain, as an author, despite of being an American, showed his criticisms about war and patriotism that many people might be trying to pursue. He was intensively outraged by the American invasion in the Philippines by the Second World War, and this emotion moved him to come up with his piece, the War prayer. He exerted all his effort to assert how the real idea of patriotism might be distorted, and at the end, result to more humanly damaging actions like war. He started his assertions, by first visualizing a scene, when people are at the stage of preparation in going to war. He described how the called spirit of heroism flew unto the air; people gathered, fully motivated and convinced that what they are going to do is a thing of great nationalistic worth. He described a festive day, wherein every people in the land are strong in their heart, that such action to wage war is something that will give honor to their country, with reminiscence of those patriots that once risk their life for nation’s sake. Such statement will surely create an appeal to everyone who thinks of the national heroes patriotic deeds. It creates persuasion to everybody, such that hastily, arrived to the decision that there is nothing wrong about war. As what he described, “...nightly the packed mass meetings listened, panting, to patriot oratory which stirred the deepest deeps of their hearts, and which they interrupted at briefest intervals with cyclones of applause...,” He attempts to show, how one person might be convince to join and support the pro-war idea. A mass campaign is done, and speakers tend to emotionally stir the hearts of people to make justifications. This justification is even made stronger once religious authorities showed and extended their support to that claimed nationalistic idea. Twain added; “...in the churches the pastors preached devotion to flag and country, and invoked the God of Battles beseeching His aid in our good cause in outpourings of fervid eloquence which moved every listener.” All these things created impact to the society to be in coordination that war is of good cause. Those who withdraw pro-war support tend to keep quiet so that they will not be criticized by the majority that seemed to celebrate a festive day preparatory to what they call, “...going into the field of honor”, which is figurative of saying going into the war. All people, are motivated of thinking of one thing, that through that special event that they are doing, God will bestow the fulfillment of their wish, which, that God will support their nationalist spirit. Then later on the war prayer started, asking God, pleading to Him, that their good cause might bring honor to their country, that their patriots, assembled before the day of their leaving for patriotic deeds will receive the guidance of the Almighty for their deeds. As the preacher prays the long war prayer, Twain has added the good twist to that special ceremony he begun to narrate. As the people in the ceremony, (which might symbolize to all those who conform to the war) prayed in their hearts to the fulfillment of their wish, a certain person comes, a messenger from God, that evaluated the prayer that the preacher and all those people in the ceremony zealously supplicate. The author made the person of this character stronger when he started to explain the innermost content of all the prayers that they are trying to send to God. It is not just a matter of winning the war, and giving honor to country, but the consequences. He supports the sentiments of those who decided to be quiet and disapprove war, as Twain remarked, “for their safety”. This man, who came into that ceremony, speaks for all those people who really understand the stubborn idea of bringing honor to the country through bloody warfare. It is a superficial thing that a person might be requesting something, without making necessary analysis to the context of his request, and the surrounding circumstances that might result in making hasty decisions. The messenger explained; “If you would beseech a blessing upon yourself, beware! lest without intent you invoke a curse upon a neighbor at the same time.” That person in long robe gives all those who attended the ceremony the clear visualization of the fulfillment of their prayer. He first explained that their wishes will be granted, once he is able to explain the real meaning of their prayer. He tells that, their wish might mean something that might favor them; on the contrary, it might also bring injustice to others. Meaning, Twain, might also stand for that man, filling that character with all of his ideas and belief about patriotism being exploited by pro-war groups. They all wish for winning the war, but they are not certain and aware, that their flare for patriotism is connected to those “unmentioned results”, the bloody and disastrous result of war for mankind. The ceremony that they are doing is a mean of consecrating the war, however, the result of the war can not be consecrated. If we are going to analyze what patriotism really mean to Mark Twain, this will enlighten us to the fact, that killing and war for him is not really the rightful. For Twain, as being symbolized by the man who explained the war prayer, true patriotism does not mean that you are going to wish for somebody’s harm that is very inevitable during war. A person who supports the war and desire for the death and sufferings of others are selfish. That is what he really wants to say. He is attempting to give a clear assessment of the traditional notion to patriotism. Patriotism is to bring honor to your country in going to the field of honor which is war. If you desire to win, then it is just like saying; “...you pray for the blessing of rain upon your crop which needs it, by that act you are possibly praying for a curse upon some neighbors crop which may not need rain and can be injured by it.” It is causing damage to your neighbor, but you are happy of what you are doing to the belief that it is patriotic that way. This is the idea that Twain is asserting. It is not only Twain, who outrage the wrong idea of patriotism. Bob Dylan in many of his songs has a special heart in always keeping his withdrawn support to killing because of war. In his song, Blowing in the Wind, he keeps on asserting how many lives are wasted, how many people are affected because for every canon balls, for every war that every government and every leaders pursue. Similar to “The War Prayer”, he point out how many people does not listen to the real and true message of anti-war groups. In his song, he said; “How many times must a man look up Before he can see the sky? Yes, n how many ears must one man have Before he can hear people cry? Yes, n how many deaths will it take till he knows That too many people have died? The answer, my friend, is blowin in the wind, The answer is blowin in the wind.” People are seemed to be deaf to hear the real message of war and fake patriotism that war evokes. The answer is but natural as wind that blows, but still no attention has been paid to it. Both Bob Dylan and Mark Twain says that supporting war can not be consecrated nor justified. In the song “Masters of War”, Bob Dylan showed how he shared the same sentiments with Twain. It says; “Youve thrown the worst fear That can ever be hurled Fear to bring children Into the world For threatening my baby Unborn and unnamed You aint worth the blood That runs in your veins.” In my personal point of view, I support the idea that Mark Twain is trying to portray in his satire “The War Prayer.” The United Nations has been formed so that every race, every country, every people in world will share peace and help each other. That is patriotism. Real patriotism would not mean to be a person that valiantly carries a sword, riding a horse, and beheads other people to bring honor for one’s country. It is a radical idea that to make a patriot is to shed blood. It is but through, that heroes appear during wars, but many people have died first, before that patriot has been declared as a patriot. Checking the over-all consequences, there is no real winner in war. Everyone is a looser. Does it mean that you won just because you have killed more enemies, than the enemies have killed more of your race? It does not. You won against them by killing more of them, but the fact is you are on the side of the oppressor. It is not patriotic and it is not an honor to be on the side of the oppressor. This is the mere reason why Twain, though an American raised his criticism through this satire against the act of the American government in sending troops to invade the Philippines and go in that traditional patriotic claim, field of honor. It is a concrete fact that war brings more disgrace than honor, more disasters than benefit, betrayal to life than true patriotism. For me, patriots are those who want peace and the good others. Real honor is achieved for preservation of life and not in the murderous killing field of war. Works Cited: Jim Zwick ed., Mark Twains Weapons of Satire (Syracue: Syracuse University Press, 1992), pp. 156-160.  Dylan, Bob. Blowin in the Wind. November 17, 2006. Dylan, Bob. Masters of War. Read More