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¶ … Narrative of a Revolutionary Soldier
In his memoir A Narrative of a Revolutionary Soldier, Joseph Plumb Martin recounts his experiences fighting in the Revolutionary War as a private, providing a view of the war not usually seen in histories dealing with the more famous major political and military leaders of the day. In particular, Martin's perspective on colonial and British officers and soldiers, the day-to-day experience of the war, and his reasons for staying throughout the campaign offer the reader a useful insight into the realities of the American Revolution from the perspective of an average soldier.
Although Martin serves under a variety of admirable officers during his time fighting for the colonial army, at one point in the narrative he encounters a particularly heartless officer which serves to demonstrate some of the class differences likely not seen in other accounts of the war. As Martin and some of his comrades are attempting to retreat and bring a sick man to safety, they are stopped at "a place where our people had begun to make a stand" and an officer...
35). Martin informs the officer that they are transporting a sick man who "would die if exposed all night to the damp cold air," but the officer merely responds that "if he dies the country will be rid of one who can do it no good," revealing a calculating brutality often not mentioned when considering the reality of the Revolutionary War (Martin, 2010, p. 35).
Even Martin's attitude regarding the "British (regulars, as the good people then called them)" reveals a changing perception due to the confronting the realities of war, because although Martin hears rumors that the British "were advancing from Boston, spreading death and desolation in their route in every direction," which ultimately spurs him on the become a soldier, his attitudes changes once he experiences the day-to-day realities of being a soldier. Martin's experience reveals the somewhat arbitrary nature of the difficulties facing the enlisted soldier, and when he has a chance to return home for a while he "endeavoured to make [it] as agreeable as possible, well knowing…
References
Martin, J. (2010). A narrative of a revolutionary soldier. New York: Signet Classic.
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