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Chapter 12
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Long Long Way, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Youth, Naivety, and Growing Up
The Horrors of War
Family, Camaraderie, and Love
Political Conflict and Divided Loyalties
Resilience and Shared Humanity
Summary
Analysis
Jesse Kirwan’s court-martial takes place in August. Father Buckley speaks on Jesse’s behalf, but Willie is not allowed to attend. Major Stokes, the chairman of the court-martial, rules that the military must uphold duty and discipline above all else. As a result, Jesse is executed at dawn. After the firing squad shoots him, the birds sing in the trees as if he never existed.
Jesse is punished with death for his unwavering Irish nationalism because his loyalty to Ireland conflicts directly with the loyalty he owes England as a soldier in the British Army. Thus, Jesse’s execution underscores the idea that an Irishman can’t fight obediently for England if he earnestly desires Ireland’s freedom from British rule.
Themes
After the execution, Willie helps dig Jesse’s grave. As he does so, Father Buckley recounts to Willie the stories Jesse told him about his family. Willie hates to listen to these painful tales because he doesn’t want them weighing on his heart and mind for the rest of his life. Nevertheless, he listens, and they do weigh on him. That night, Willie sneaks out and sings the “Ave Maria” over Jesse’s grave. He feels brotherly toward Jesse. Willie also knows with certainty that he’s no longer the same person he used to be.
Jesse’s death profoundly impacts Willie, who now carries a heavier burden of sorrow within himself. As Willie sings the “Ave Maria,” the hymn becomes connected to the loss of yet another important person in Willie’s life. Just as the “Ave Maria” symbolizes Willie’s love and grief for his late mother, the hymn now also symbolizes Willie’s similar love and grief for Jesse, whom he feels close to as if they were brothers.
Themes
Later, O’Hara expresses to Willie how sad it is that Jesse Kirwan was killed just for disobedience. He confesses that he could be shot for worse. He tells Willie a story from the early days of the war, when he and his fellow soldiers came across a nun in a small Belgian village. The nun had been tied up, raped, and maimed, but she was still alive. O’Hara’s lieutenant wanted to help her, so they freed her and brought her with them. When they stumbled into an attack, they dropped into a ditch for cover, where O’Hara’s comrade hit the woman and then raped her. O’Hara held her down while the other soldier assaulted her.
O’Hara’s story reveals that the horrors of war don’t refer only to the pain and trauma that soldiers experience, but also the terrible suffering that civilians—especially civilian women—face during wartime. Soldiers from both sides of the war inflict horrific violence against the Belgian woman, demonstrating that war enables ordinary people to commit acts of cruel, dehumanizing brutality.
Themes
Disgusted by O’Hara’s story, Willie punches O’Hara in the face. O’Hara angrily accuses Willie of being self-righteous and argues that Willie would have done the same thing in his place. Willie demands to know what happened to the Belgian woman, and O’Hara says she died of her wounds. Willie returns to his bed and lies there trembling. He wonders what terrible deeds he—or any soldier—might be capable of if O’Hara has committed such an awful crime.
O’Hara’s confession forces Willie to question whether he can still love his fellow soldier. Moreover, Willie also reconsiders his understanding of human nature. He doesn’t know if he should believe that any person might naturally be capable of committing such cruel violence, or if he should conclude that he, O’Hara, and other soldiers are now more capable of evil because they’ve been corrupted by war. Both possibilities disturb Willie.
Themes
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