Summary
War Horse opens with an "Author's Note" that calls attention to a painting of a horse; this work hangs in a rustic schoolhouse that has been repurposed as a town hall. Although many of the gathered villagers do not often pay the picture much attention, some do occasionally look over the inscription that identifies the horse and the portraitist. This painting depicts a horse named Joey, and it was painted by Captain James Nicholls in autumn of 1914. As a narrative, War Horse is an act of commemoration. The text is designed to keep alive the once-faded memory of Joey and of those who accompanied him through the trials of World War I.
Chapter 1 uses first-person narration to present Joey's perspective, beginning with the first few memories that are distinct in Joey's mind. While Joey remembers a few indistinct snippets of life alongside his mother, his first strong memory is of the horse sale that separated him from this figure of comfort. Joey's mother was quickly sold, while Joey himself was, after some hesitation on the part of the crowd, finally bought by a gruff and somewhat drunken man. Now separated from his mother, Joey lashes out in panic when the buyer and a few other men try to harness him. Yet Joey's harsh new owner finally gains control of the young horse and takes Joey off to a farm, where Joey is stabled alongside an aging mare named Zoey.
The calm Zoey immediately proves a source of comfort for Joey. She is not, however, Joey's only new acquaintance. After the man who bought Joey wanders off, the other two members of the farm family—the man's wife and thirteen-year-old son, Albert—pay Joey a visit. Albert is aware that his father has been drinking and bought Joey out of competition with another farmer, but he still considers the purchase of Joey an excellent decision. Drawn immediately to the horse, Albert rubs Joey and gives him fresh water and hay; Joey, for his part, is convinced that Albert and he will share a lifelong bond.
In Chapter 2, Joey explains that he grew up as Albert's prized horse: he and Albert would often ride through the rustic landscape around Albert's family farm, while Albert's father was mostly indifferent to Joey. One day, Albert is away from home, ringing the church bells in the nearby village. On this occasion, Albert's father, determined to win a bet against another farmer, decides to harness Joey and prove that the young horse can perform farm labor. Joey lashes out, kicking Albert's father. The next day, Albert himself takes it upon himself to train Joey. The boy knows that his father was on the verge of shooting Joey, only to be dissuaded by Albert's mother. Under Albert's firm yet thoughtful guidance, Joey learns to work as part of a farming team alongside Zoey.
As Joey adapts to farming, news reaches the village that England is likely to go to war with Germany. Albert is convinced that he, personally, would be well-suited to life as a soldier. Confirmation that Europe is at war reaches Albert's farm by way of Albert's father, who brings news that the Germans have invaded Belgium. Albert's father is convinced that the British will be able to vanquish the Germans; Albert's mother, more stunned and reserved, simply says, "Oh, dear God."
Chapter 3 begins with a description of Joey and Albert's ongoing, reassuring ventures through the countryside. However, Albert's father is having financial difficulties with the farm's mortgage, and he continues to resort to drinking as a means of dealing with his hardships. The relationship between Albert and his father has become distant; Albert's father, moreover, mostly avoids contact with Joey. One day, however, when Albert is out performing an errand, Albert's father approaches Joey in a kind manner. He offers the young horse a bucket of oats and manages to put Joey in a halter, then leads Joey off to be sold.
The opening of Chapter 4 finds Albert's father leading Joey to the village, where Joey discerns men in uniform and hears the sounds of a military band. Albert's father hands Joey off to an officer, Captain Nicholls, who is impressed with Joey's physique and bearing. Although Joey remains calm while he is being inspected, he begins to panic after the purchase is finalized, when he realizes that Albert's father has truly abandoned him. Just then, Albert rushes up. The boy speaks to Captain Nicholls, who confirms that Joey has indeed been sold to the army and sympathetically explains that Albert (who wishes to go to war himself) is too young to enlist. Captain Nicholls also promises to take good care of Joey personally. With this assurance, Albert leaves.
Analysis
A story of World War I, War Horse aspires to present a vast political and military conflict in extraordinarily intimate terms—a purpose indicated in the "Author's Note." Even here, Morpurgo's narration avoids a tone of grandeur and instead emphasizes everyday life; in fact, the narrator of this section seems well aware of the small events and customs in Joey's hometown. There are some residents who find the picture of the horse "so familiar that it commands little attention," while there are still a select few villagers who "remember Joey as he was" ("Author's Note"). The focus of this book lies not in the statecraft of World War I itself, but rather in how such statecraft affected the existences of the unassuming animals and peaceful villagers who could have little direct control over momentous concerns.
Even though the "Author's Note" explains the Morpurgo's narrative as an act of commemoration and seeks to define a personable, accessible approach to a multi-faceted war, the book itself quickly moves beyond any direct editorializing. The first few chapters of War Horse immerse readers directly in Joey's sensations. His panic upon losing his mother and his trying relationship with Albert's father are presented as painful points, but they fade quickly rom the narrative, put somewhat out of mind by the reassuring nature of Joey's bond with Albert.
For a time, War Horse reads almost as though it might evolve into a heartwarming tale of a horse and his owner coming of age together. As Joey recollects his time in the countryside, "Through the long hard winters and hazy summers that followed, Albert and I grew up together. A yearling colt and a young boy have more in common than awkward gawkishness" (8). Yet even as sources of tension, such as Albert's father, recede from Joey's life, the possibility and then the reality of war begin to loom large. Even Albert—a boy too young to enlist—is aware that hostilities are ready to break out. His father and mother have strong emotional responses to an event that seems far away.
The events of Chapters 3 and 4 serve mainly to show that at least one member of Albert's household—helpless Joey—is bound for the war zone. Yet these chapters also present new aspects of the human characters who populate War Horse, including Albert's drunken, coarse, and often dislikable father. Oddly enough, he reveals a softer side while he is in the act of leading Joey off to be sold. As Joey describes this man's actions, "His voice, however, was unusually gentle and kind as he tightened the halter and reached out slowly to stroke my neck" (22). After treating Joey in a mostly distasteful manner, Albert's father has finally begun to extend basic kindness to the horse. He also has a motivation for selling that, in perspective, is not as bad as it could be: he is simply desperate to raise money, not eager to punish Joey nor to put Albert in his place.
These chapters also reveal a new side of a character with which readers may more naturally sympathize: Albert. So far, Albert has proven to be responsible and hardworking, but he has not had much involvement in life beyond his community. When presented with the sight of the troops, Albert asks to be brought along with them. His reaction is easy to interpret as a sign of his loyalty to Joey. However, his eagerness to serve in a time of uncertainty and peril may suggest more about his character than abiding loyalty to his horse: it may indicate that Albert, a kind and well-behaved adolescent, can grow up to be a man of virtue.
