Published: May 30, 1991
My Rating: 5/5
Okay so firstly let's start with Barker's plot. Regeneration, the first in the Regeneration trilogy, is focused around Craiglockhart, a mental hospital for traumatised - or Shell shocked - soldiers who have been serving on the front line in World War One. Siegfried Sassoon, a famous poet and soldier, has just been sent to Craiglockhart for being 'shell shocked' when he actually isn't. Sassoon doesn't want the war to continue and writes in a declaration to the public, which is read out in parliament, that politicians and the general public have no idea how much the soldiers suffer out on the front lines. Sassoon even throws away his medal of honour in disgust. His friend, Robert Graves, sways the Board to send him to Craiglockhart instead of being court-martialled. Sassoon agrees and he goes to live at the hospital. Whilst there, he is under the care of psychiatrist William Rivers, and meets Owen Wilfred, at the time Wilfred was an aspiring poet and greatly looked up to Sassoon. Rivers also takes care of Billy Prior who is mute at the beginning of the novel. What I love about this book is how Rivers' opinions on the war change and how his views on the world are shaped by the patients he treats. He feels sympathetic for all of his patients, but he cannot truly understand the horrors which they have lived - I think at times this makes him frustrated because this makes it slightly harder for him to treat them - but he tries to use peaceful methods in order for the soldiers to overcome their shell shock. This story was heartbreaking in so many ways, Heather and I were talking about how tearful we were getting whilst reading it, but there are two points in this novel that really stand out for me. The first is on page 199, where Graves (Robert Graves) and Sassoon are talking about how Graves' companion was discovered to be a homosexual, Graves in fear assures Sassoon that he isn't a homosexual: 'I'd hate you to have any misconceptions. About me. I'd hate you to think I was homosexual even in thought.' Oh my goodness, at this point I was stunned. I had read some context about Sassoon and he was in fact homosexual, which makes what happens next even more heartbreaking. Robert tells Sassoon that his friend is being sent to Rivers to be 'cured' in which Sassoon replies: 'Sassoon smiled faintly. 'Yes, of course,' ' I was in tears at this point. The blatant pain that Barker has used in that one sentence completely blew me away. I felt so awful for Sassoon, I just wanted to reach into the book and give him a hug. Me and Heather had a good mope over this. The second is in chapter twenty-one of the novel where Dr. Yealland electrocutes his patient Callan, in an attempt to fix his mutism. When we compare Dr. Yealland and Rivers they act as foils, or dramatic foils, they are complete opposites. Rivers represents peace and tranquility within his profession, he cares profoundly about his patients. Whereas Dr. Yealland represents pain and suffering, in my opinion I don't believe he cares much for his patients at all: 'Callan wrenched his arm out of Yealland's grasp and ran to the door.' I just thought that this part of the novel was really distressing, I can't imagine how frightened Callan must have been. Rivers leaves feeling upset and rather disgusted about the whole ordeal - he is reflecting the reader's views at this point. I know that Lydia and Heather found this point of the book very disturbing as well. I think overall that this novel is a harsh reality, it doesn't romanticise the war at all, and it makes the reader have a great sense of pathos for the characters in the novel. We pity them, we feel terrible for them, but we know what's going to happen to them. Wilfred Owen for example died one week before the war ended, in a way this made the novel harder for me to read because every time he is mentioned I would feel extremely sympathetic towards his character, knowing what fate he has after he leaves Craiglockhart.
I think the characters in this novel were very real and engaging. I adore all of these characters very much, but I particularly have a soft spot for Billy Prior and Rivers. I love the dynamic between the pair of them, Rivers treats Prior like a son, and though Prior is horrible towards Sarah (Me and Heather were very much outraged at the church scene where he attempts to sexually assault her), I think his character development is wonderful and his snarky attitude made me laugh a lot. Rivers is another of my favourites because he has a very caring attitude and does his best to look after his patients, his own health beings to deteriorate because of this. Rivers is a father figure type protagonist, he expresses his admiration towards his patients and the pride he feels when they have achieved a certain milestone. In addition to this I loved Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon as well, and the way we see their relationship develop too.
Overall, this has been my favourite book which we have studied in my English Literature class so far. World War One and Two have always been particular interests of mine and I loved studying the topics in history. One of my favourite genres is also historical-fiction which is another major reason why I enjoyed this book so much. Barker did a fabulous job with Regeneration and I can't wait to get the next book in the trilogy, The Eye in the Door, which is mainly focused around Billy Prior and Rivers. If you are interested in World War One and historical-fiction I would definitely recommend this to read!
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