The Effects of War on Gender Roles

In Rebecca West’s “The Return of the Soldier”, West depicts trauma as a way to shift the generally accepted norms of gender roles because the war blends men and women together as people who suffer from the hardships of reality.

West reveals part of the traumatic effects of World War I as a force that transforms Chris into a passive individual. The women actually do their best to keep the house operating efficiently, but the war essentially made Chris a hollow man. Additionally, Chris went to the stables and attempted to interact with the animals. Nevertheless, Chris still takes pride in his domestic life. Ultimately, the war made Chris a senile individual, but he still honors his fundamental roots as a family man who loves both his wife and his home.

While Chris might have turned into a weak individual, the war made the women stronger because of the trauma that they had to face. For example, Kitty and Jenny both had to help Chris deal with his issues. Even though the women did their best to be strong, they still can never fulfill the desire to have the life they had prior to the war. The metaphor that compares domestic life to a stage show implies that the women essentially have to employ a façade of a pleasant life even though the war directly impacted both the men and women involved. In the end, the women could try to recreate the happiness that existed prior to the war, but the consequences involved with the war made its aftermath a struggle that is hard to endure.

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