alice penrose essay notes..involvement in themes
...re ignorantly attacked. WAR Alice plays a huge role in the theme of ‘war’. Her decision to become an Army nurse in order to aid people is also a clear indication of her individuality, as she refuses to play the role of the typical woman of her era. Although she could not herself enlist, becoming a nurse during a time when they were in urgent need of such assistance, was to her, the next best thing. Her services overseas are evidence that she is prepared to stand in when in need, prepared to face a challenge and able to handle herself adequately under pressure. We also learn a lot about Alice’s character through here involvement in war as she barely survived when many died when she endured the suffering as a P.O.W (prisoner of war), (48). RELATIONSHIPS/FRIENDSHIPS Alice’s participation in ‘friendships’ is crucial to the novel, as is those of every other character. In particular the once close and trusting friendship between Alice and Mitsy that becomes strained by the influential suspicions of the imposing war. ‘If you look at the water in a pond it is calm and still, if you picked up a stone and threw it into the pond, the water would ripple, but if you waited long enough the water would return to its original state of calm and still. Though the pond may appear to be as it once was, ...