Love and War Essay -- Literary Analysis, The English Patient

War has the capacity to foster love while equalizing social status. The novels The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje and A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute substantiate the fact, through fiction, that during war-time men and women who are not of the same station in life can find an incomparable love with one another. Each novel also gives evidence of love igniting during war and surviving the trials of time and distance. Hana and Kip from The English Patient and Jean and Joe both go through these trials and tribulations associated with love and war. Whether that love is doomed for failure or a future together forever†¦it never dies. The love between men and women of different stations during times of war is manifested in The English Patient between Kip and Hana. Kip and Hana have a cultural difference due to race. Their identities are diverse from one another. Kip was born in the Punjab and raised in India while Hana is a white young woman from Canada and that difference in any other environment would have had an impact on the closeness of their relationship. A relationship between the two in a normal environment would have been unusual. Although Kip’s cultural heritage and skin color is different from Hana, Kip see’s himself as more English than Indian after he spends so much time identifying with other Englishmen. Kip finds himself in a very perplexing situation. He begins transforming and accepting English traditions into his life, while still trying to hold on to his own Indian traditions. Racial tensions were high during the 1940’s, and Indians in England were seen as second class cit izens. â€Å"In England he was ignored in the various barracks, and he came to prefer that† (196). Kip’s self-sufficiency, â€Å"†¦was as much a result ... ...ove and devotion to one another. â€Å"‘Dear Joe. Of course I’m in love with you. What do you think I came to Australia for?’† (248). They had found a bond in the war based on need, a need for companionship and understanding, and in that need they later discovered an enduring love that could never die. During times of war love is cultivated and social statuses are eradicated. War wipes away all the concerns with petty things in life while lifting up the values that we hold so strongly to within our hearts and souls. War makes people remember what is truly important in life and gives individuals a sense of purpose. Love and friendship are unbreakable bonds that we as humans cherish. All of the trivial concerns in our civilized world often tend to make us temporarily forget that fact. Love makes us human, especially during times of war when people can seem so inhumane.