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Sebastian Junger’s book War examines the brutal reality of combat from the perspective of those fighting on the frontline. Through real experiences, Junger succeeds in providing a thought-provoking insight into the emotional realities of combat as experienced by a platoon of combat infantry in the U.S. Army. The book contains recurring themes of fear, comradeship, unity, physical toughness but most importantly a discourse on the nature of war itself. By the end of the book, we come to understand that although war is emotionally and physically straining, it is also psychologically comforting as well as exciting and it is understandable why soldiers miss it.
Dubbed as one of the most dangerous postings in Afghanistan at the time, Sebastian Junger along with his friend and photojournalist, Tim Hetherington, made five trips to the Korengal Valley in eastern Afghanistan between June 2007 and June 2008. Junger was in his own words an “embedded reporter and entirely dependent on the U.S military for food, shelter, security, and transportation (Junger 2010, pg. XI). He lived as they did; the only difference between Junger and the men was he carried a video camera while they carried weapons. Nonetheless, this did not influence the way in which the soldiers saw Junger or his ability to capture their true experiences. Rather, this closeness with the men and eventually the relationship they built made it possible for him to achieve his task of an insight into the realities of combat.
Through using direct observation, either in person or using videotapes and secondary sources, Junger makes it possible to connect the experiences of the soldiers he wrote about to the experiences of soldiers in previous wars. This connection results in an appreciation of the significance of the soldiers’ experiences (Aucoin 2016) but we come to realize that these experiences are not different war to war, century to century. He used the men of Battle Company as studies to understand soldier’s experiences on the frontlines of war. As outsiders who have not experienced war, we can never understand what the men go through but Junger presents such a vivid visceral description in the Korengal valley, which allows us the readers to also become embedded into the lives of the soldiers, their mental state and the reflexive decisions that occur during combat. We also become so connected with the men and immerse ourselves in their stories that we begin to understand the dynamics of the platoon, their cohesion and dependency on each other, which fosters a bond amongst the men.
Bonds of war
To further understand the realities of combat, Junger focuses on the sociological structure and function of the platoon by dividing the books into 3 sections: Fear, Killing, and Love. Nonetheless, the section on Fear and Love truly reveals the sociological nature of war and the impact it has on those on the frontline. Both experiences tie to one another in combat as the love the men had for each other made it possible to overcome their fear in combat or as the psychiatrist, Herbert Spiegel called it the ‘X-factor’. Love in the context of the book is the bond that essentially allows the men to overcome tremendous fear. An example of this is Cortez’s statement when asked if he would risk his life for other men in the Platoon, he states, “I’d actually throw myself on the hand grenade for them […] because I actually love my brothers […] I mean, it is a brotherhood. Being able to save their life so they can live, I think is rewarding. Any of them would do it for me” (Junger 2010, pg. 246). This is a profound statement which speaks volumes about the sociological function of the platoon is the very nature of the combat. This is demonstrated in team leader Sal Giunta total self-sacrifice for the unit when ambushed; to him he just made a decision best for the group but this is an act of courage that is driven by his devotion to the men in his unit. This self-sacrifice is shown in previous wars where men have died acting on their devotion to their brothers. The idea of yourself dying is more palatable than the ideas of protecting yourself and everyone dying as the latter means a betrayal of your brothers. This is Brotherhood. It is the willingness to die for another person that is a form of love that even religions fail to inspire and the experience of it changes a person profoundly (Junger 2010, pg. 239).
Brotherhood has nothing to do with how you feel about the other person. It is a mutual agreement in a group that you will prioritize the welfare of the group; putting the safety of everyone in the group above your own. In effect, you are saying, "I love these other people more than I love myself" (TED conference 2014). The ability to testify such an act of self-devotion for the lives of men who have no relationship to each other aside from being team members is profound form of intimacy that can only be built in circumstances where “human relations are entirely governed by whether you can trust the other person with your life” (Junger 2010, pg. 234). It is this reliance and certitude to each other helps all combat soldier to act as a whole unit but also ensures the survival of the group in combat. This is psychologically comforting for the men, most of whom are in their early twenties, who have known nothing but life at home with their parents and war (Junger 2010, pg. 22). The unit provided a safety net to them but also give them a sense of identity and responsibility which most of them do not have in a wider society. In the Korengal, they have a duty and a form of responsibility that makes them have a sense of importance to the war. It is this genuine act of bravery, devotion to each other and intensity of the bond but most importantly love that the men miss when they go back into society where human relationships can be taken for granted but also is isolating.
Why men miss war
Building on from the sociological nature of war, Jurger also explores the psychological impact combat has on soldier’s, precisely why soldiers miss war. As you get further into the book, it is obvious that war with all its terror, destruction, comradeship and monotony, is also thrilling. Even so, Jurger does not romanticize war or the impact it has on those on the frontline, rather he is frank about the fact that war is a lot of things and it's useless to pretend that exciting isn’t one of them (Junger 2010, pg.144). Combat is fuelled with so much adrenaline and thrill it is ‘life multiplied by some number that no one has ever heard of’ and many of these men would play the game one more time if they could. To those who have not experienced combat this is unusual, but Junger makes it explicit that it is not the killing or death of their brothers that they miss. Rather, it is the adrenaline of it all whereby even the thought of dying is the last thing on your mind but also as explored previously soldiers also miss the comradeship formed with the men around you that you are not related to effectively becoming the moral and psychological equivalent of your family (Junger Sebastian, Traub James 2014). War is connoted with negative characteristics that the fact that soldiers can feel anything good or even miss it is strange. Nevertheless, to the men combat is as traumatic as it is also a place where human relationships are not taken for granted compared to the civilian life where they feel isolated. Soldiers find it difficult to integrate back into civilian society, as they do not know how to react to it after being trained to fight and survive for 15 months. Junger does not ignore the difficulty that comes with returning back into civilian life with some men including O’Byrne is expressing their fear of solitude with soldiers experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder when they return to their military base in Vicenza, Italy. At the end of the book, O’Byrne makes the statement that “maybe the ultimate wound is the one that makes you miss the war you got it in” (Junger 2010, pg. 268) we come to realise that as bad as combat is it’s not as bad as trying to readjust and we see that at the end of the book.
Sebastian Junger, throughout the book, remains impartial which, as a journalist is important considering he is living in close quarters with the men for 15 months. We also see that he not only shares the soldier’s experience, which he captured and conveyed well to readers. But, shares how he also changed as well as his mental state which is helpful to convey the reality of combat. Most importantly the sociological and psychological impact of War.
Bibliography
James Aucoin (2016) Sebastian Junger's War, “Expert Testimony,” and Understanding the Story, Journalism Studies, 17:2, 231-246, DOI: 10.1080/1461670X.2014.965927
Cottee, Simon (2011) 'Fear, Boredom, and Joy: Sebastian Junger's Piercing Phenomenology of War', Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 34: 5, 439 — 459
JUNGER SEBASTIAN and TRAUB JAMES, 2014. Ethics Matter: A Conversation with Sebastian Junger. https://www.carnegiecouncil.org/studio/multimedia/20140312-ethics-matter-a-conversation-with-sebastian-junger
JUNGER, S., 2010. War. Fourth Estate,
TED CONFERENCE, 2014. Why veterans miss war. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGZMSmcuiXM&t=106s