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Spencer's 'Soldier Boys': Chapter Summary

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Soldier Boys is a novel about two young boys, Spencer and Dieter, who have gone off to fight in World War II. Both boys decide to enlist to prove a point; Spencer joins to show his family that he is no longer a silly teenage boy with a crush and Dieter to prove how great of a German boy and soldier he is to the Fuhrer and Germans all over the world. They soon learn that the war is not about them, but instead the people they have chosen to protect and the beliefs they must stick by. The author, gives great insight to both sides of the same war and the emotions involved, because he writes about why people on either side join, how other soldiers and their actions influence what type of soldier a person becomes, and how the outcome of a single …show more content…

He wants to prove himself worthy of becoming a soldier in the German army instead of a little boy in Hitler Youth. He sees another boy jump in and is determined to do the same, he succeeds. The reader learns his father is still bitter about his own time in the war and Dieter often refuses to give a second thought to his opinions. At this time he is blind of any consequences war may have on him, and is determined to join whether or not he be killed in the process stating, “If he ever got the chance to go to war, he would return with medals, not with whining complaints. Or perhaps he would not return, but in Krumbach every one would know of his bravery. On the other side of the world in a different year, Spencer Morgan has just turned fifteen. Everywhere he goes he hears about the Japs bombing Pearl Harbor and it’s no different when he gets home. Realizing how serious this is, his brother announces his decision to join. This gets him thinking, and all through the school day the war is the only thing on his mind, that is until LuAnn starts talking to him. He tells her that one day he will join and she laughs him off, making more determined than ever. His father soon allows Robert to join and he tries to make his father allow him to go off too. His father reluctantly agrees and he decided to join the

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Dieter thrilled to the words, hoping that the day would come when he could prove himself…” (Hughes 6) This shows that he blindly follows Hitler from his speech even though other Germans know that Hitler is lying or is stupid showed thought out the book Hughes shows again that one shouldn't believe everything one is told from Dieter having one of his soldiers run off on his watch. The soldier was his friend and by the rules he is supposed to attempt to find him, and when he is found execute him “What about Hoffman?” Dieter

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According to Gene Phineas always stood out around the other boys specifically with his thoughts on the war, “Phineas alone had escaped this [war]” (202). World War II which took place throughout the plot and is a highly significant impact on the theme of maturation, the theme that it helps build is a much more difficult theme to get a full grasp on with much to uncover as the audience reads deeper into the text. The war often mention in this novel is not only World War II but the war of maturation. This war is a process of them growing from their adolescence to adulthood. Through this growth from adolescence to adulthood the boys of Devon also go through a process ignorance to understanding, a safe haven or another reality or the real world.

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In Soldier from the War Returning, Thomas Childers writes that “a curious silence lingers over what for many was the last great battle of the war.” This final battle was the soldier’s return home. After World War II, veterans came back to the United States and struggled with stigmatized mental illnesses as well as financial and social issues. During the war, many soldiers struggled with mental health issues that persisted after they came home.

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Present throughout the book is the theme of disillusionment. In the school, they’ve been told by their schoolmasters and parents that unless they join the war, they would remain cowards. They see propaganda after propaganda, all alluding towards the glory of battle and warfare. Out on the front, they realize that nothing was further from the truth. Their dreams of being heroes shattered, like when they compare themselves to the soldier on a poster in chapter 7.

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On page 79 it states, “ Then the Fuhrer handed Dieter the medal.” Another symbol was Spencer’s heart. Spencer’s heart was the thing that made him join the army but also made him lose his life because he felt like he had to save the boy on the hill ( Dieter ). On page 22 it states, “ I think that you want to prove something to LuAnn Crow-ther.” In Solider Boys, two significant characters are Dieter and Spencer.

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Soldiers were not viewed as brave men risking their lives, and the war was seen as an unnecessary event. This type of mentality is seen in the novel with the perceptions of the soldiers. The narrator expresses the view of the time period when he states, “They were soldiers’ coats. Billy was the only one who had a coat from a dead civilian” (82). The meaning behind this is very crucial because it establishes a definite division between soldiers and civilians.

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Dieter Hendrick’s devotion gets him noticed and promoted from Hitler’s Youth into the German army. He is determined to show his braveness and become one of the best! Spencer on the other hand gets infuriated whenever Pearl Harbor happens and will do anything to help. He informs his family that he wants to become a Paratrooper but his family wanted him to become a missionary.

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Soldier Boy was written by Dean Hughes and was published in the year of 2001. It is a fiction book about two boys named, Dieter Hendrick and Spence Morgan. Dieter is fifteen and in the Hitler Youth and he wants to be promoted into the German army. Spence has just turned sixteen, and wants to be a paratrooper, so he drops out of highschool so he can start training. When the boys actually go into war, it's not what they were expecting.

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However, Erich Maria Remak novel "the west line has no war" pay attention to from the angle of the young people, the soldiers watch adult to write. A soldier is the social department. Even in combat, a popular soldier in playing different social roles. The soldier is also the son of man, man 's brother, perhaps ordinary people. However, the young man fighting state more complex.

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Throughout the ages, wars have wreaked havoc and caused great destruction that lead to the loss of millions of lives. However, wars also have an immensely destructive effect on the individual soldier. In the novel All Quiet on the Western Front written by Erich Maria Remarque, one is able to see exactly to what extent soldiers suffered during World War 1 as well as the effect that war had on them. In this essay I will explain the effect that war has on young soldiers by referring to the loss of innocence of young soldiers, the disillusionment of the soldiers and the debasement of soldiers to animalistic men. Many soldiers entered World War 1 as innocent young boys, but as they experienced the full effect of the war they consequently lost their innocence.

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By manipulating the war setting and language of the novel Heller is able to depict society as dark and twisted. Heller demonstrates his thoughts of society through the depicted war. In the novel, the loss of personal identity in the soldiers lives. Furthermore, The idea is that supports how much value is placed upon a human life and shows the evils and cruelty of war is related The Ball Turret Gunner by Randall Jarrell, in which a soldier who spends his entire life in war only to die the same position he came into the war “fetal” state; just to be disregarded and buried in a whole.

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This book is about three boys whose fathers are fighting in the war in Iraq. They want their fathers to come home. The boys try to get contact with them, but they do not hear from them very often. It is emotional and has a real connection to what families must feel like. It is a graphic novel, and I like that in a way.

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Charley and Henry had to kill people in hand to hand combat, so these soldiers have gone through a lot in the war. The main characters in this book were both young, Henry was the legal age of 18 but he was still young, and Charley was only 16 when he signed up. The hardships of the war and all the kill caused both characters to go insane from the killing. the soldiers were in the same war, the Civil War, but fought in different battles. Overall the soldiers were required to go through tight and nervous experiences while in

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One of the prevailing themes is that of the imminent war and enlistment. The war encroaches and finally dominates the boys lives at Devon. Starting with the boys shoveling snow off of the train tracks, then their friend, Leper, enlists, and finally when troops get permanently stationed at Devon. This story is relatable to teens that are the same age as Gene since they do not constantly think about war but as they get older they start to think more and more about

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What I have learned from this book was coping with WW1, injuries from war, and being a bystander. Coping with war can be hard. In this book, Jake and some

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