John Brown

John Brown
Bob Dylan
pages 916-917

The main argument in Bob Dylan's work John Brown is that war that too many soldiers go into war not aware of exactly what they're getting themselves into. More specifically, he is saying that soldiers don't deserve to face everything they do in war because of the consequences that can come from it. He writes, "'Oh I thought when I was there, God, what am I doing here? I'm a-tryin' to kill somebody or die tryin'. But the thing that scared me most was when my enemy came close and I saw that his face looked just like mine.' Oh! Lord! Just like mine!" (page 917) Here he's talking about the emotional and mental trauma that soldiers suffer on the battlefield. In conclusion, it is Dylan's belief that soldiers suffer too much from war.

I think that Dylan is right but I also believe that soldiers should know what they're getting into when they go to war and that the training they go through is a good preparation for them. For example, camp and training in the military can be excruciating and hard but it prepares the men and women who go to fight both physically and mentally for what they may face. Though others may argue that the training soldiers go through is too hard, I maintain that is necessary to prepare them. In conclusion, I believe that Dylan is right in saying soldiers face trauma and stress while in war that comes home with them.