Coming Home: How the Humanities Help Soldiers Find Meaning After War

Description

What is the true nature of war, and how does the experience of war affect the human heart? How have the myths and realities of combat, and the invisible wounds of war, been portrayed over the ages? Jeb Wyman, a presenter with the Humanities Washington Speakers Bureau and author of What They Signed Up For: True Stories by Ordinary Soldiers, will discuss stories of the men and women who served during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, incorporating experiences and insights from famous writers and philosophers about war and its aftermath. Drawing from hundreds of hours spent with veterans, Wyman discusses the profound moral and emotional impact the experience of war has had on them, and how war forever changes those who return from it. Whether it was fought on horseback in the Civil War or in Humvees in Baghdad, veterans face grave challenges after war-haunted by memory, burdened by guilt, searching for meaning, and trying to re-join a society they believe cannot understand the reality of war. Wyman also discusses how studying war through the lens of the humanities may help both veterans and civilians heal the wounds of war.