History Literature / JohnnyGotHisGun

* TitledAfterTheSong: The title derives from the opening lyrics of "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over_There Over There]]", a 1917 hit song written by George M. Cohan that was popular with United States military and public during both world wars.

* LiteraryAllusionTitle: The title refers to "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over_There Over There]]", a 1917 hit song written by George M. Cohan that was popular with United States military and public during both world wars.

[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/johnny_got_his_gun2.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:325:[[Music/{{Metallica}} "DARKNESS! IMPRISONING ME! ALL THAT I SEE! ABSOLUTE HORROR!"]]]]

A 1938 novel by Dalton Trumbo that became a rallying point for the political left after UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. It follows a young man named Joe Bonham, who, after becoming grievously injured during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, is left deaf, blind, dumb, and without any limbs. Throughout the book, Joe reminisces about the life he lost, waxes philosophical on war and conscription, and tries desperately to communicate with the doctors keeping him alive.

A film version was written and directed by Trumbo himself in 1971 and starring Creator/TimothyBottoms as Joe, Creator/JasonRobards as his father, and Creator/DonaldSutherland as Jesus Christ (as dreamed or imagined by Joe). The screenplay stayed fairly close to the source material but with new scenes added (we see more of what's going on around Joe in the hospital, for instance). The film was reintroduced to the mainstream in the late 1980s when clips from it were featured in the music video for [[Music/AndJusticeForAll1988 "One"]] by Music/{{Metallica}}, who later bought the film's rights in order to re-publish the video without paying royalty fees.

A film version was written and directed by Trumbo himself in 1971 and starring Creator/TimothyBottoms as Joe, Creator/JasonRobards as his father, and Creator/DonaldSutherland as Jesus Christ (as dreamed/imagined by Joe). The screenplay stayed fairly close to the source material but with new scenes added (we see more of what's going on around Joe in the hospital, for instance). The film was reintroduced to the mainstream in the late 1980s when clips from it were featured in the music video for [[Music/AndJusticeForAll1988 "One"]] by Music/{{Metallica}}, who later bought the film's rights in order to re-publish the video without paying royalty fees.

* PosthumousCharacter: Joe's father, who died around the time Joe was sent off to fight in WWI, appears in Joe's memory flashbacks, dreams, and hallucinations.

A film version was written and directed by Trumbo himself in 1971 and starring Creator/TimothyBottoms as Joe, Creator/JasonRobards as his father, and Creator/DonaldSutherland as Jesus Christ (as dreamed/imagined by Joe). The screenplay stayed fairly close to the source material but with new scenes added (we see more of what's going on around Joe in the hospital, for instance). The film was reintroduced to the mainstream in the late 1980s when clips from it were featured in the music video for "One" by Music/{{Metallica}}, who later bought the film's rights in order to re-publish the video without paying royalty fees.

A film version was written and directed by Trumbo himself in 1971 and starring Creator/TimothyBottoms as Joe, Creator/JasonRobards as his father, and Creator/DonaldSutherland as Jesus Christ. The screenplay stayed fairly close to the source material but with new scenes added (we see more of what's going on around Joe in the hospital, for instance). The film was reintroduced to the mainstream in the late 1980s when clips from it were featured in the music video for "One" by Music/{{Metallica}}, who later bought the film's rights in order to re-publish the video without paying royalty fees.

A film version was written and directed by Trumbo himself in 1971, staying fairly close to the source material but with new scenes added (we see more of what's going on around Joe in the hospital, for instance). The film was reintroduced to the mainstream in the late 1980s when clips from it were featured in the music video for "One" by Music/{{Metallica}}, who later bought the film's rights in order to re-publish the video without paying royalty fees.

A film version was written and directed by Trumbo himself in 1971, staying fairly close to the source material but with new scenes added (we see more of what's going on around Joe in the hospital, for instance). Music/{{Metallica}} later bought the rights to the movie so they could use clips of it for the music video to the song "One" (based on the book).

* SenseLossSadness: Joe cries bitterly when he realizes he lost his sight, hearing, limbs and face.

* MessianicArchetype: Joe sees himself as this as he continues to think about his unique condition.

* FilkSong: Music/{{Metallica}}'s "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzgGTTtR0kc One]]". They even purchased the rights for the movie to use it in the video.
--> Darkness, imprisoning me\\
All that I see\\
Absolute horror\\
I cannot live\\
I cannot die\\
Trapped in myself\\
Body my holding cell

* BasedOnATrueStory: Trumbo claims he came up with the idea for ''Johnny Got His Gun'' after reading an article about the Prince of Wales's visit to a soldier who had lost all of his limbs and senses in a Canadian veterans' hospital.

* BrokenRecord: A well dressed man in Joe's Christmas party flashback keeps repeating "I am the Boss, this is champagne, Marry Christmas!"

* BasedOnATrueStory:
** Trumbo claims he came up with the idea for ''Johnny Got His Gun'' after reading an article about the Prince of Wales's visit to a soldier who had lost all of his limbs and senses in a Canadian veterans' hospital.

** Trumbo stated this in a ''New York Times'' interview shortly after the ''Johnny Got His Gun'' movie came out and it's been repeated ad nauseam. But no one ever seems to have looked into it.
** The Prince of Wales did visit a soldier who lost his limbs in a Canadian veterans hospital, and the same soldier did appear in at least [[http://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/how-this-wwi-veteran-became-metallicas-one one newspaper article]] which referenced the meeting. The rest appears to be Trumbo's own invention.

* AuthorTract

* CharacterFilibuster: Joe in the last two chapters.

* HopeSpot: When Joe [[spoiler: finally manages to get his anti-war message across to the people]].

* MadnessMantra: [[spoiler:Just before fading to black, "S.O.S. Help me"]].

* [[StillFightingTheCivilWar Still Fighting The Forty-Five]]: During one of his reveries, Joe remembers a Scottish soldier who refused to fight against a Bavarian regiment because they were led by [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rupprecht,_Crown_Prince_of_Bavaria Crown Prince Rupert]], [[UsefulNotes/HanoverStuartWars who held the Jacobite claim to the throne of England]]. Joe was amazed the soldier's superiors didn't just shoot him for treason; instead, they rotated him to the back of the trenches until the Bavarians themselves were rotated out.

A 1938 novel by DaltonTrumbo that became a rallying point for the political left after UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. It follows a young man named Joe Bonham, who, after becoming grievously injured during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, is left deaf, blind, dumb, and without any limbs. Throughout the book, Joe reminisces about the life he lost, waxes philosophical on war and conscription, and tries desperately to communicate with the doctors keeping him alive.

* AndIMustScream: Joe in fact tries to scream when he realizes what happened to him, but is unable.

* DeliberatelyMonochrome: The film alternates between Joe in his war torn state, and flashbacks of his life before the war. The flashbacks are in vibrant color, while the present is in dreary black and white.

* ICannotSelfTerminate: Joe begs to be killed. In the movie a nurse tries to end his life, but is stopped.
* {{Irony}}: In the film Joe is raised a Christian Scientist, whose belief entails that the material world doesn't exist, including disease and injury. Realizing this will heal you. Joe is seen desperately trying to tell himself "Nothing exists but mind" without success.

* AltumVidetur: A title card before the film's closing credit reads "Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori" which means "It is sweet and proper to die for one's country". Wilfred Owen wrote a rather famous anti-war poem by the same name.

* CruelTwistEnding: The military officer's response to Joe's request to be put on display to show the public what happens to people like him who are unwillingly sent out to die: ''What you ask is against regulations. Who are you?'' Leads right into the DownerEnding.

* SenseLossSadness: Johnny is crying bitterly when realizing he lost his sight, hearing, limbs and face.