Book Club Discussion Questions
For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, and our BookBrowse Review of Soldier's Heart.
Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
About This Guide
The questions and discussion topics that follow are designed to enhance your
reading of
Soldier's Heart. We hope they will enrich your experience as
you explore Elizabeth D. Samet's inspiring reflections on literature and the
education of America's future warriors.
About This Book
A decade ago, Elizabeth D. Samet began teaching English at the United States
Military Academy at West Point after completing her doctorate at Yale
University. She encountered stark contrasts and surprising similarities
between the two campuses, but nothing fully prepared her for the experience of
watching her students and colleagues deploy to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other
turbulent corners of the
world. What does literature—particularly the literature of war—mean to a student
who is likely to encounter its reality? What is the best way to stir uninhibited
classroom
discussions in a setting that is designed to train students to follow orders,
respect authority, and survive grueling physical and mental experiences? This is
the
terrain Samet traverses each semester, a challenge beautifully captured in
Soldier's
Heart.
Taking its name from a World War I–era term for a condition akin to
post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD), Samet's memoir offers insights into America's newest
generation
of cadets. In each chapter she reflects on a rich trove of literature, from
Homer's ancient epics to the work of modern and contemporary authors such as
Wilfred Owen, Virginia Woolf, Randall Jarrell, E. L. Doctorow, and Tim O'Brien.
For many of her students, reading brings solace and inspiration. For others, it
sparks an examination of doubts or fears. In all cases, Samet's courses provide
exhilarating
arenas for the young men and women of West Point to explore life and
language.
- Discuss the book's title. What are the different meanings of "soldier's
heart"? In
what ways does literature address the ailments of what Wilfred Owen calls, in
his
poem "Insensibility" (epigraph), a heart "small drawn"?
- Although much has been written about West Point and military life in America,
an English professor's point of view on the subject is rare. What specific
insights on
this world does Samet offer as a civilian and a humanities professor at a
military
academy? How is her portrait of military life different from others you have
read?
- How does Samet's description of her students and former students compare to
your stereotypes of soldiers? What are those stereotypes? How does Soldier's
Heart
confirm or challenge them?
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- How does the author develop themes of identity and belonging throughout the narrative?
- What role does the setting play in shaping the characters' decisions and relationships?
- Discuss how the ending reframes the events of the story. Were you surprised?
Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Picador.
Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.
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