Under the influence of war, soldiers become intoxicated by the chaotic environment and seize the opportunity to commit immoral acts. However, several factors including politics, the participants, and the concept of war itself, allow for this dangerous environment to exist; this is especially true of the long and brutal war the United States was involved with in Vietnam. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photographs from the war, and the film Apocalypse Now convey the nonexistent boundaries of war in regards to morality. These sources represent how the bureaucratic side of the conflict took precedent over the lives of soldiers and how an environment indifferent to morality lead to the desensitized mentality and loss of humanity experienced by the …show more content…
Specifically, two images from the war show the destructive and unknown territory that these soldiers were subject to. In the first photograph, a battalion descends a hill. Th audience faces the deep and dark forests and steep hill with the soldiers, whose backs face the camera. The photo’s perspective allows for one to feel as though they were trekking alongside these men. Also, the soldiers’ faces are not visible, therefore, the viewer can make their own conclusions about the image such as the soldiers are afraid and tired, yet they must continue on their journey. Similarly, the second image which features a group of soldiers taking a break in a forest focuses on the general setting of the picture instead of the face of the soldiers. Unlike the other photo, the trees in the area are dead; they were most likely destroyed with agent orange. Although their faces are not seen, it is implied that the soldiers are tired. These two photographs represent the dead environment that the soldiers had to become accustomed to in a …show more content…
The entire film revolves around Willard’s mission to kill a once respected military leader “with extreme prejudice”. Therefore, when Kurtz’s compound is finally revealed as the remaining PBR crew members and Willard approach Cambodia, it is understood why the army has turned against one of its own men. When Lance, Chef, and Captain Willard first arrive at the compound, they are greeted by a photojournalist. The journalist excitedly babbles about how great and misunderstood Kurtz is. He invokes the image of Kurtz being a god when he states “we are all his children” and simply refers to Kurtz as “Him” to a confused Willard. Being so good at the job of killing and ordering soldiers to kill people has resulted in Kurtz turning to extremism. In fact, the General who assigns Willard this mission tries to reason with Kurtz’s extremism by stating that he simply reached his “breaking point”. By becoming an unstable, authoritative leader of a group of locals, Kurtz embodies what the U.S. tries to fight against. Moreover, after Captain Willard butchers Colonel Kurtz (which is paralleled to the scene of a native ritual involving the killing of a water buffalo), Kurtz’s followers readily bow down to Willard who they view as their new god. The lack of order in a war-torn society along with the abuse of power by soldiers involved in the