The Thin Red Line (Masterplots II: American Fiction Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: James Jones
- First Published: 1962
- Type of Plot: Psychological realism
- Time of Work: 1942-1943
- Setting: Guadalcanal, in the Solomon Islands, and the west Pacific Ocean
- Principal Characters: John Bell, James Stein, George Band, Edward Welsh, Doll, Fife, Witt, Queen, Storm, Gordon Tall, John Gaff
- Genres: Long fiction, Psychological fiction
- Subjects: 1940’s, World War II, Mental illness, Fear, Soldiers, Pacific Ocean
- Locales: Oceans, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
The Novel
The true protagonist of The Thin Red Line is not a single individual but an entire group, C-for-Charlie Company. No one character provides a point of view that unifies the narrative; instead, a sixty-man group, its fortunes and misfortunes, provides the dominant focus. In keeping with this, James Jones provides a list of all the members of the company at the beginning of the book. Although each is referred to at least once in the course of the novel, some individuals are more important than others, and Jones skillfully follows the action from the points of view...
[The entire page is 2456 words long]
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