Date of Award

2016

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Department

English

Abstract

Guardians of Freedom is my attempt to make sense out of my time spent in uniform, in the only way that is appropriate: hyperbolic comedy. It is a story of Specialist Henry, a disillusioned soldier returning from one deployment in the Global War on Terror and facing another. Thoughts of making a difference and changing the world dashed, he wants nothing more than to be rid of the uniform and live an admittedly pointless life. He is joined by the various characters of Bravo Company, the deploying unit which has been used as a dumping point for medically-impaired soldiers. Outwardly, the story is about the bureaucracy and inanity of military life in a time of prolonged war. Hopefully though, there is a glimpse at the very real people that I met and loved and who, like me, were forced to find a way to survive and live in an environment that’s sole purpose revolves around death.

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