First Death Themes

Dedication to Serve
Robert Cormier’s novel, After the First Death is filled with many themes and messages. Cormier attempts to relate the characters, although radically different on the surface, to common themes. The reader bears witness to Cormier developing the radically different characters in high tension environments to result in witnessing their most intimate motivation as human beings. The most prominent theme that results, patriotism, is most prominently emphasized with the characters of Ben, General Briggs, and Artkin.
Regardless of the mental trials Ben progresses through, he is still immensely patriotic. Ben is extremely committed to serving his country on the bridge, to his maximum capacity. When the Freedom Fighters torture Ben
Artkin cares deeply about his country, and thoughts involving his country consistently linger on his mind. He barely reveals his core philosophy and raw emotion to Miro, but on a rare occasion, he admitted to his longing for his homeland and that he is “forever homesick” (Cormier 19). This is extremely significant since Artkin is never emotional, so that means that when he is, his emotion is completely candid and genuine, since it is so rare. This translates to Artkin being extremely committed to his homeland, and willing to serve it in whatever capacity he can, which translates to Artkin being a patriot. Artkin values his homeland over his life. He does not care whether he lives or dies and when discussing the situation on the bus, he is indifferent towards death since “‘to die in these circumstances is the best way to serve’ ” (Cormier 114).This devotion to put his country before his wellbeing shows great loyalty or patriotism. The fact that General Briggs and Artkin are able to connect on a personal level shows a very powerful level of patriotism. General Briggs and Artkin have never met, and possess no common set of characteristics, but regardless, General Briggs “knew exactly what lengths [Artkin] was willing to go.”(Cormier 193). If an observer can agree there is a connection between these individuals, they would realize that the only thing these characters share is being a leader in their nation’s respective line of command, and that must suggest that each man must possesses a very strong dedication towards each man’s respective country. It is extremely significant that Artkin’s patriotism is so incredibly powerful to create an understanding with a complete stranger. Artkin’s great importance to the Freedom Fighters’ mission shows that his patriotism is so powerful that it inspires others. He has been a powerful, forceful, committed leader of the Freedom Fighters that even Miro thinks