Postwar Reentry Narratives in Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony and Ben Fountain’s Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

Johnston, Carrie

doi:10.1353/sdn.2017.0037

Cited by 2 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Since the publication of the novel, few scholars have paid attention to the women in the book. Starting from the centrality of women's textual presence in postwar narratives, Carrie Johnston (2017) reveals the suppression of women's voices in Ben Fountain's novels (Johnston, 2017). Moreover, many scholars have analyzed it in terms of content or the theme, such as the exploration of the postmodern war writing, the trauma of Billy Lynn, the pursuit of the public and so on.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Symbolic Significance of “Faison” in Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

2022

JSSH

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In Ben Fountain's Novel Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (2012), Billy Lynn, who participated in the halftime show of the Super Bowl with his comrades, had been in a dilemma: whether to be a deserter or to return to Iraq to share life and death with his comrades. Faison was a beautiful and kind cheerleader. She had a major impact on Billy's choice. She fell in love with Billy at the first sight. In the story mainly about soldiers, what is the author's intention of creating such a female character? Therefore, Faison is a very important role in this novel. As the novel progresses, the symbolic meaning of "Faison" is constantly strengthened. For Billy Lynn, Faison is no longer just a beautiful and sexy woman in real life, but a symbol in Billy's imagination. In the exploration of the symbolic meanings of Faison, the paper mainly discusses three of them. First, Faison symbolizes the good and ordinary life Billy has been pursuing. Second, Faison stands for the public misunderstanding of and contempt attitude to these poor soldiers. Third, Faison represents Billy's faith in life. She becomes a "mirror" of Billy, which hardened his resolve to make his own way.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Symbolic Significance of “Faison” in Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

2022

JSSH

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“…Americans maintain their innocence by deflecting their complicity in a war they have authorized. They are naïve regarding the realities of war and soldiers' growing disinterest in the Iraq War (Johnston, 2017). Americans are either ignorant or stunned that the Bravo soldiers ought to redeploy in Iraq after they have proven their gallantry in a courageous firefight there.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Americans are either ignorant or stunned that the Bravo soldiers ought to redeploy in Iraq after they have proven their gallantry in a courageous firefight there. Billy recognizes the absurdity of the heroic and patriotic narratives spinning around him and admits that he desperately needs someone to help him come to terms that either America or he is thoroughly damaged (Johnston, 2017). Brian Williams (2017) claims that the novel illuminates how much the public patriot rhetoric builds on "individual civilian desire, specifically civilian feelings of guilt and inadequacy" (p. 528).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Carrie Johnston (2017) considers the novel a post-war reentry narrative since it follows "the predictable tropes of the western and follows the deterministic logic of the West as a point of destructive origin rather than a productive point of reentry" (p. 409). Fountain's postmodern style responds to war by countering the ideological spectacle of endless war with sincere disillusionment (Blazer, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, Sarah O'Brien (2021) argues that even though Fountain's novel addresses the marginalized lives of soldiers as individuals who contribute to the traumatic work of an empire, it engages chiefly with American people, ignoring the narratives of those affected by the imperial violence (namely, Iraqis). Even though women provide glimpses of hope for Billy and offer opportunities to get a way out of this sterile and unproductive hero atmosphere, the novel prevents these prospects, as it precludes female characters from speaking for themselves (Johnston, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Negotiating Heroism in Ben Fountain's Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

Sabtan

Alosman

2022

International Journal of Social Inquiry

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This paper examines Ben Fountain’s Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk apropos heroism/post-heroism within the context of the 2003 Iraq War. The paper aims to uncover the novel’s approach to soldiers’ behavior on the battlefield, their perspectives on war, and how the American public interacts with their endeavors. While heroism celebrates acts of bravery and chivalry, post-heroism signals the decline of heroic ethos in the context of war, where soldiers are left to question the actual value of sacrifice on the battlefield. We make the argument through two constructs: “unheroic actions,” which addresses soldiers’ behavior in war, and “clash of perceptions,” which discusses soldiers’ versus the public’s perspectives on heroism and war. Though the novel’s setting serves to celebrate soldiers’ gallant feet in war, Fountain ridicules such heroic rhetoric throughout the novel and demonstrates how soldiers are reluctant to accept the public overenthusiasm about war and their status as war heroes.

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Postwar Reentry Narratives in Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony and Ben Fountain’s Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

Cited by 2 publications

References 7 publications

The Symbolic Significance of “Faison” in Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

The Symbolic Significance of “Faison” in Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

Negotiating Heroism in Ben Fountain's Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

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