The Psychological Impacts of War: The War Within Wars of De Niro’s Game

Zeel Mansur

Ms. Shaw

ENG3U1-06

May 19th, 2017

The Psychological Impacts of War: The War within Wars of De Niro’s Game

Amidst of a civil war, Lebanon is a place where nothing remains upright for long. “De Niro’s Game”, by Rawi Hage portrays the consequences of war in the everyday lives of young adults. Living in Beirut amid a war causes them to behave ruthless as they are not bounded by any laws. The  atmosphere of war causes the main characters, Bassam and George, to disregard the contrast amongst good and bad and proceed with their remorseless conduct, as they are aware that there is no discipline of wrongdoings in the midst of a war. Rawi Hage effectively uses the setting of a war zone in Beirut to shape the personality of characters by expanding on relationships between characters, law against cruelty and foolish behavior caused by violence.

                War causes George, also known as De Niro, to disregard the value of his relationship with his  childhood friend, Bassam. The war evokes the thirst of power in George’s mind which costs him his friendship. Due to poverty, George, “…rises in the ruthless world of the militia but, at the same time, loses his moral compass, callously betraying a friend…” (Birns). George easily gets influenced by a well-known personality in Beirut, Abou-Nahra and feels no shame in conducting unethical behavior. On an unexpected evening, Bassam’s foe, Najib comes with two companions and violently threatens Bassam, “Don’t show up at the machines anymore, do you understand?” ( Hage 99). However, upon using violent conduct, Najib reveals the identity of the other two companions by stating, “They are De Niro’s friends” (Hage 101). Bassam later discovers George had sent the men as he feels Bassam was not distributing money equally.  Moreover, Bassam demonstrates no regret towards his deeds and keeps misleading George considerably more.

                Lust for power compelled George to continue betraying his friend, Bassam. He deceives Bassam primarily by sexually romancing with Bassam’s lover Rana. Bassan expresses his reaction towards George’s dishonesty by stating, “I had almost killed George, my brother who stabbed me and kissed me, and who kissed my lover long enough to leave me…” (Hage 139). George crosses all the limit when he blames Bassam for a huge mishap of an old man Laurent Aoudeh’s murder. Due to this accusation, Bassam goes through  torture in jail and expresses, “I was afraid that the monster might burst into my cell and ask me to walk again” (Hage 155) thus showing his fear of going through such torture again.  Bassam learns that, “[George] have killed” (Hage 179). Too influenced by power, George simultaneously continues to betray Bassam despite knowing the value he holds in Bassam’s life.

Beirut has an unstable atmosphere where the dropping bombs has become normal, funerals are  more common than ever, and law has no influence.  In Beirut, anyone can own a gun and initiate violence whether for legal or illegal reasons and due to this, George and Bassam, exceed their limits . As quoted by Bassam, “War is for thugs. Motorcycles are also for thugs, and for longhaired teenagers like us, with guns under our bellies…” (Hage 13). This proves that even teenagers like, Bassam and George, are not bounded by any laws and  have permits to use guns at any time. For George and Bassam, the gun is a toy that can be used to solve any sort of conflict. When Bassam gets caught harbouring a gun, “De Niro [comes] with an order of release from Abou-Nahra, and [Bassam is] freed” (Hage 44). There is no value of law when everything is influenced by big personality like, Abou-Nahra, as he is the commander of the militia. With the help of Abou-Nahra, Bassam was freed from a crime and had to pay no price. Civil war brings upon violence in Beirut compelling teenagers like Bassam and George to own a gun illegally and use it for any situation. It also depicts how strong personalities like, Abou-Nahra, can take control of any power when needed in urgency, even when the situation is unjustifiable

                On the contrary of Beirut, which is, “…a society where bombardment and killing are the daily routine of life…” (Hany), the setting shifts to Paris, which is a city of rules and regulations. When Bassam decides to settle in Paris, he instinctively carries a gun everywhere for his self-defence when in necessary. . However, when Bassam is seen with a gun, Roland states, “We should meet, but come without your object” (234). Roland’s reaction of  Bassam carrying a gun, proves that Paris is a place where peace and harmony is taken very seriously   and getting away from the crimes would be difficult. Therefore, as Bassam is asked to throw the gun he carries in his bag, he expresses how he is  so accustomed to carrying a gun when he states , “I walked back to the hotel feeling an unbearable lightness. The bag on my back seemed irrelevant, useless…” (Hage 232). After throwing the gun, Bassam feels as if a big part of his life is missing as he is so acclimated with having a gun, which however is illegal in Paris. The setting of Paris illustrates how order can create humans to be disciplined and behave in proper manners, whereas, a country with no laws create more obstacles by bringing more violence within the people.         

        Despite the contrast between the two cities, Hage portrays the roles of laws against cruelty, by highlighting the treatment of women  in both cities. The novel  mainly discusses three female characters, Nabila, Rana, and Rhea. In Beirut, Bassam’s first sexual interest is Nabila, George’s aunt and he states, “I pulled at her nightgown, and drove to her large, round nipples” (Hage 160). Rhea is another character in Paris who is as well portrayed merely as Bassam’s sexual partner. After moving to Paris, Bassam encounters Rhea who is George’s sister and Bassam, “slept in her bed and [they] made love” (Hage 213), thus also depicting Rhea as Bassam’s sexual desire. However, there is still a contrast between treatment of women in two cities. In Beirut, Bassam shows no true feelings for Nabila as she is only a target for his sexual desire and Nabila cannot protest as she is aware of the possibility of cruel actions Bassam can take and there will be no law to aid her . On the contrary, Bassam considers Rhea as his girlfriend and shows true feelings towards her. To emphasize further, mistreatment of women in Beirut is common. Despite having no faults, women are abused, as quoted by George, “ Women started to scream, begging us, telling us that they had already surrendered. Kamil grabbed one of them by the hair, pushed her on the floor, and stepped on her neck” ( Hage 176), thus proving that brutal conduct is done against women even if they are not at fault, and there are no laws in Beirut to stop the actions. However, such events do not take place in Paris, as penalty for such actions can be cruel to a great extent. Hage effectively uses the contrast between, Paris; a city with law and Beirut; city with cruelty, by also emphasizing the treatments done towards women .

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