The Wars begins in Toronto in 1915 and focuses on Robert Ross, a sensitive shy man who loves animals and seems unsuited to war. The story follows Ross on his travels back and forth between England and France up until 1918.
Robert’s sensitivity is seen as a weakness, because he was unable to kill his sister’s rabbits after she died. He also had a hard time killing a lame horse, so it appeared that he could have some difficulties with killing people during World War I.
Robert Ross Goes to War After Rowena’s Death
Robert was extremely traumatized by his sister Rowena’s death. She died after falling out of her wheel chair while playing with her rabbits. As her guardian, Robert felt responsible because he wasn’t there to protect her. He wasn’t necessarily in favour of the war, but he was in deep mourning and saw no other options for escape. He gets the idea to enlist after meeting a soldier at his sister’s funeral.
It’s not a surprise that Robert appears to lose his mind by the end of the World War I. Other men who were not so sensitive also went crazy, which means no man is necessarily suited for war. One thing Robert Ross did not lose was his love of animals. In fact, he risked his life trying to free the horses.
Point of View in The Wars
The Wars is written from an archivist’s point of view and includes first hand accounts from survivors, pictures and diaries. Because of this, Timothy Findley used first, second and third person narratives in The Wars. This is rarely done because it’s seldom successful, although in this case it works.
Some of the Characters in The Wars
- Taffler was a war hero who Ross decided was an ideal example of masculinity to emulate. Later, he’s disappointed to find out he has strange quirks and weaknesses like everyone else.
- Barbara D’Orsey and Juliet D’Orsey: Juliet was only 12 when she fell in love with Robert. By the time she gives her account of events in England, she’s 80 years old. She describes her sister Barbara as a fickle and shallow woman who becomes Robert’s lover.
- Mr. and Mrs. Ross: Robert was close to his father, but not his mother. His mother seemed incapable of showing much emotion and erected a wall so that she wouldn’t get hurt by anyone. She attempted to force Robert to kill his dead sister Rowena’s rabbits, but he refused. In her defense, her intentions were probably to toughen him up.
Animals in The Wars
Animals were used in The Wars to portray character, foreshadow danger and to symbolize hope. For example, Ross was excited about a rat being alive and helped save it by lifting it out of the mud. “It squealed as he lifted it over the edge and set it free. Robert wondered afterwords if setting the rat free had been a favour—but in the moment that he did it he was thinking: here is someone still alive. And the word alive was amazing.” (Findley, 127)
Rabbits reminded Ross of his sister Rowenda because they were also fragile and innocent. Birds alerted him of danger with either their cries or their silence, and horses remained his faithful companions.
Ross often seems to prefer animals as he sees humans as cruel and savage-like. This is understandable after he witnessed so much cruelty at the hands of men.
Timothy Findley is brilliant at creating vivid visuals in The Wars (Penguin Books, 1977, ISBN: 0-14-024116-7) and his descriptions of World War I were disturbing and emotional. It underlined the pointlessness of war and the resulting loss of humanity and sanity.
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Sandra Williams - Sandra's a book addict and writer from Ontario, Canada. Her interests include cooking, health and personal development, so many of her ...
