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Lillian Szuba

Mrs. Cramer

College Comp Pd 8

18 December 2020

Passion and Aggression

In the beginning, “I don’t call it cruelty. I do not apologize.” (Page 84) Julie Berry’s

Lovely War is centered around multiple POV’s. Between Greek Gods and Goddess’s as well as

the two couples whose stories are being told. In Lovely War, author Julie Berry utilizes multiple

points of view to give the reader insight into the characters and teach a lesson about passion and

aggression. In Lovely War, author Julie Berry teaches a lesson about the ties between passion

and aggression through the multiple points of view of love and war.

First the multiple POV’s in Lovely War helps us understand each character and how they

feel. The POV’s consist of Greek Gods and Goddess, as well as the two couples whose stories

are being told throughout this book. The POVs are used to help the reader understand the

connection between passion and love, as well as the connection between aggression and war. “It

was real and true. However new, however young.” (Berry 82). The first POV that is shown is the

Goddess of love Aphrodite. Aphrodite tells the story of the two couples, Hazel and James, and

Colette and Aubrey. The Greek Gods and Goddess’s POV’s helps Aphrodite tell the story of the

two couples who fell in love during the middle of a war.

To illustrate this the author incorporates all the main characters. Ares, God of War. One

of the Greek Gods that helps tell Aphrodite's story. On pages 148-151 Ares talks about James's
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training for the war. This is when the soldiers who were higher up took note of his impeccable

and natural talent for shooting. Which foreshadowed that he’d become a sniper later in the book.

As the book is coming to an end both James and Hazel try to get the other to leave them. On

page 391 after James has been discharged from the military on medical leave, Hazel and James

reunite. In Aphrodite's POV, James is talking to Hazel on a beach. James is talking to Hazel

about how he’ll never be the same boy she used to know and how what he's lived through will

always be with him. Hazel had convinced him to always let her be with him as well. On pages

424 and 425 Hazel does the same to James. Before this Hazel had been in a terrible accident, she

was going to see James and Colette was with her. When the explosion happened causing Hazels

accident, she saved Colette by sacrificing herself. However, when Hazel woke up, she had scars

that marred her face. Hazel gives James the opportunity to leave. James in turn doesn’t leave

saying that she will always be his Hazel the same one he fell in love with. The passion between

Hazel and James directly links to the example of love that is being written throughout this book.

Consequently, this story is not only about passion it is also about aggression. In Aubrey’s

POV, he and Lieutenant Europe find the body of Joey Rice. He had been strangled. Earlier in the

story Aubrey Edwards and the 15th New York’s K Company arrived at the YMCA Relief Hut.

(Berry 128) Where Aubrey met Colette Fournier, Aubrey was an African American male and

was unable to see Colette freely as African Americans were not allowed to go near the white

woman volunteers. After Aubrey and Colette first met, they had secret meetings. After one

Aubrey was held at gun point by a white male who Aubrey took care of and a little after that

Aubrey returned to his hut and Joey used the restroom when he was killed by the white male

soldiers in the YMCA. Hades another Greek God’s POV in this story tells more about the

aggression as does Ares’s POV’s. On page 121 Hades talks about the German army that invaded
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Belgium which was neutral during the war. Countless Belgium’s died that day, including

Colette’s first love. Another one of Hades POV’s revealed that the day of Hazels accident she

died. Aphrodite had begged for her to be brought back to life, because her story wasn't finished.

(Pages 413-415 Berry). Hades had agreed to her request. The explosion on the train was just

another example of how far the Germans were willing to go. On pages 313 and 314 Ares POV

tells us that the German infantry that James and Frank Mason were Infront of decided to rush the

American infantry. James took out the German soldiers that threatened his infantry except one

led to the death of his friend Frank Mason. Berry writes about the casualty of wars which in turn

shows how when there is war, aggression isn't far behind.

To conclude this book is structured around multiple POV’s. Julie Berry’s Lovely War

causes the reader to rethink and take a different look at how each of the characters in this story

acts. The multiple POV’s in this story helps to give the reader an inside look at how each of these

characters think and act. Which teaches us about passion and aggression. The multiple POV’s

help to explain the story that the author is telling better. It also allows us to understand the

connection that passion and aggression have with each other. Between the Greek Gods and

Goddess’s POV’s as well as the two couples POV’s truly shows the connection. This book

taught its readers about passion and aggression by incorporating the story into an event that

happened. Including World War II into the story was a great way to teach the readers about the

aggression that always comes when war is occurring. However, the book also incorporates love

which teaches us about passion.

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Works Cited

BERRY, JULIE. LOVELY WAR. PENGUIN Group USA, 2020.