George R.R. Martin is best known for his books that have inspired ‘Game of Thrones’, and for the merciless brutality he has shown throughout his work. All of his works have some impressive yet gory graphic depictions of violence and the horrors of war. Other than his brilliance, his work has over the years justified the author’s interests in conflicts.
It could therefore be surprising for many that the popular author has opened up about his aversions to wars. Though he is not against all wars, he has emphasized that most historical conflicts were not worth fighting, including the Vietnam War. Here’s what he said.
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“The Vietcong Were Not The Nazis”: George R.R. Martin Reveals Why He Thinks The Vietnam War Was Unnecessary
George R.R. Martin has given the entertainment world some of the most iconic wars right from the Red Wedding to the Battle of the Bastards. However, he recently revealed that he is not a huge fan of real-life wars, and has time and again opposed the Vietnam War.
The author said he was of draft age when the Vietnam War started and chose to become an objector. Martin argued that he was against participating in what he viewed as an unjust conflict. He contended that the war against Nazi Germany was justified, and he also would have fought in WW2, but argues that the Vietcongs weren’t Nazis.
“The big question they would always ask you was ‘Would you would have fought in World War 2 against the Nazis?’ Yes, I would have fought in WW2 against the Nazis… but the Vietcong were not the Nazis and I didn’t think America had any business in Vietnam,” the author said.
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George R.R. Martin Has An Animated Image Of World War II
This is not the first time that George R.R. Martin has spoken up about the Vietnam War. In a previous interview, he publicly drew comparisons between different conflicts to highlight the moral clarity of WWII. He noted that WWII stands out in history as the closest thing to a “fantasy war,” featuring a clear “dark lord” in the form of Adolf Hitler and some univocal evil forces.
He further asserted that WWII was in stark contrast with the more ambiguous and politically driven nature of other wars. He said that WWII, with its clear moral imperative, was an exception rather than the rule, and ended up changing the nature of the war further.
“I sometimes think the second world war has changed our entire western civilisation’s view of war, because, of all the wars in history, the second world war is closest to fantasy war, in which there is a dark lord, whose guys are actually evil and dress in black and wear skulls on their uniforms. The first world war was a much more typical war: what were all those people really fighting for?” Martin said during the interview.
Martin’s skepticism of the Vietnam War is in line with his broader objection against war as a solution to political problems. And yet, ironically, he is the most established fantasy war-writer that we know of.
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