On every 4th Monday of May we celebrate a day called Memorial Day. Memorial Day gives us the opportunity to acknowledge and remember those that have served in the United States Armed Forces. Today we see a lot of movie producers and actors reenact World War II and give the audience a feeling of what soldiers went through. As a little kid you dream of going to the Armed Forces because its “cool.” As we grow as humans we come to reality and ask ourselves, “would we be able to survive in an environment of that caliber. Kids are often times driven in by the fact that they get to shoot guns and jump out of airplanes in foreign countries from 15,000 feet.
When reality hits, all the negatives come out and the idea of dying and being severely injured strikes kids’ minds. Although this may not go for all young adults, this moment in life shows, generally, when in both an unstable environment and human nature to try and conquer the obstacles that are in a human’s way. This theme is present in Steve Crane’s novel, The Red Badge of Courage. Henry Fleming, the novels protagonist, is a young soldier fighting for the Union army in the American Civil War. His battle to overcome his distressed feeling in a war zone represents the amount of courage and investment within himself to bring out a positive aspect in an adverse circumstance. In Khaled Hosseini novel, The Kite Runner, Amir and Hassan experience a similar challenge with a power and social imbalance, Amir being the stronger and braver of the two young men. In The Red Badge of Courage, and The Kite Runner, both authors examine how hostile environments become barriers that impede a characters destiny
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Though The Red Badge of Courage and The Kite Runner vary in ways, for example courage and social classes, both novels include how environments lead to characters making principal decisions throughout the book. Through the battle Henry “felt the subtle battle brotherhood more potent even than the cause for which they were fighting”, bringing out perseverance and developing a selfless character (Crane 37). Henry is a prime example of how coming in from an untried situation in battle later on questions his courage. Henry is depicted as a dependent and fragile man and “was forced to admit that as far as war was concerned, he knew nothing of himself”, questioning is war really for him (Crane 8). For instance, Henry’s enlistment into the army is for his own pleasure of glory, entering battle without a weapon.
The severity of hostile environments is also characterized in The Kite Runner. The Afghani communities “ears became accustomed to the whistle of falling shells”, having sleepless nights and “rumble of gunfire” changed how characters throughout the book work together to achieve one goal (Hosseini 278). The unlivable environment enforces a depression not only on Amir but Hassan. Amir coming from a high social class came with a certain level of expectancy. However, Amir tends to look up to Hassan for protection in troublesome situation. The boys run to Ali for protection, and he holds Hassan tight, provoking Amir's envy. (Bloom) In spite of Amir's propensity to look down on his companion because of his social standing and absence of training, Hassan remains by Amir, and would effectively help or ensure his companion. The community as a whole has been “frightened badly, because none of us had ever heard gunshots in the streets”, leading to the Taliban interrupting the way of life for Afghan people (Hosseini271). The Taliban has disrupted and is the cause to the hostile environment, bringing fear and the loss of citizens’ rights.
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