Real Soldiers

On the seventh chapter of Slaughterhouse Five, Edgar, Billy, and Gluck (the German boy guarding them) come across a war widow in the slaughterhouse kitchen. She said the Gluck was too young to be in the army, and Edgar was too old, she then turned to Billy and didn`t really know what to make of him. ““All the real soldiers are dead”, she said. It was true. So it goes.” (pg. 159). Having lost her husband to the war, this widow must have felt disappointed to see that the army had run out of brave war heroes, and were now abundant in these strange looking soldiers. In probably all wars, the bravest die first while the least devoted live on. Derby, who should have been viewed as an honorable participant of WWII, was instead judged inappropriate, but anyone at that age who chooses to fight for his country, should be considered a “real soldier”. The American army in this novel however, was described by several people from foreign countries (including Englishmen, and German war widow), as a miserable and disgraceful sight. Even I would consider most of the characters introduced to us as inadequate to represent the United States in war.