These two works are plaintiff verses about war. Neither
one presents war in a positive light. Both focus on the plight of the soldier and both
illustrate how soldiers suffer - being taken away from their families, living in harsh
conditions, all in order to protect their countries.
What man is not taken
To defend the
four bounds?
What plant is not wilting?
What man
is not taken from his wife?
(from The Book of
Songs)
Where have all the young men
gone?
Gone for soldiers every
one
(from Seeger's
song)
Seeger's song is more
of a protest song against war. It is reminiscent of the Book of Ecclesiastes in the
Bible in the way it presents the cycle of life - where have the flowers gone, picked by
young girls; where have the young girls gone, married to young men; where have the young
men gone, gone for soldiers; where have the soldiers gone, to the grave. It illustrates
the futility of war when it asks the
question:
When will we ever
learn?When will we ever
learn?
The Chinese folk song
does not really express this view, although it does express the harsh reality of the
life of a soldier:
Alas for us soldiers,
Neither by day
nor by night can we rest!
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