Essay Questions

What is the significance of the novel’s title?

The title of the novel is a reference to a popular ballad from 1917 entitled “Over There” and the song itself is a romanticized call to arms urging young men to fight for a glorious, patriotic cause and, obliquely, to die a heroes’ death. There are a number of possible interpretations relating to the grammatical structure of the novel’s title that alludes to its clear antiwar rhetoric. “Johnny” is about as generic an American name and “Joe”, the name of the novel’s main character, is just about as common as “Johnny.” This choice of name gives an everyman appeal as most every American reading the novel would know at least one person with this name, making the sentiments of Johnny/Joe all the more poignant. “Johnny Got His Gun” is also written in the past tense suggesting to the reading audience to think more about the aftermath of war rather than just the combat element.

How is the novel’s anti-war theme tackled?

War, or rather the condemnation of war, is the central theme of the novel. The main character, Joe, is the author’s mouthpiece for sharing and dissecting his pacifist ideals. War and combat are not glorified at all in the book, in fact there is a considerable lack of battle narratives. Instead, it is discussed through the effects that it wreaks upon life at large: it disrupts normal, healthy rhythms of life and relationships and leaves a huge amount of pointless, wasteful destruction in its’ aftermath. Joe himself becomes a poster boy for the destruction and life-altering effects of war because he looses his limbs in the war, and with the loss of his limbs he loses the capacity for a normal life.

What does the rat symbolize in the novel and what is its significance to the story?

Joe comes to despise these animals more than the enemy soldiers he fights against because he sees them feeding indiscriminately on whatever corpse was available, whether friend or foe. He decides for himself that this is horrible way to go: ending up a food for an animal and actually starts defending even enemy soldiers from being eaten by rats. It soon becomes very clear that the rat/rats are clearly the victors in the war and as such rats are symbolic of people or establishments that profited from the demise and/or misery of other people. The novel makes no clear reference to who or what these people or establishments are exactly but it can be concluded that wartime profiteers and military manufacturers, as well as politicians jockeying for power, could be just some of the establishments and individuals that the author is critiquing through the symbolism of rats.