Regeneration - 2: The Eye in the Door

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Pat Barker's acclaimed antiwar novel returns to the World War I era in a gripping narrative set in the spring of 1918. As a massive German offensive looms over the English army, the government and a panicked public seek scapegoats, targeting pacifists and homosexuals. Many face persecution, with some jailed and others living in fear. The phrase "the eye in the door" symbolizes the paranoia threatening British society. Central to the story is Lieutenant Billy Prior, recently released from treatment for shell shock by psychiatrist Dr. William Rivers. Assigned to a domestic Intelligence unit in London, he must investigate a female pacifist accused of plotting an assassination—a woman who raised him and now accuses him of betrayal. Complicating matters, Prior has had a passionate encounter with Charles Manning, an upper-class officer whose social standing offers him some protection against the dangers of being exposed as a homosexual. Billy Prior embodies the conflict of a working-class man elevated to officer status, a soldier haunted by war yet loyal to his comrades, and a bisexual struggling with his identity. As he navigates these challenges, the author crafts a vivid portrayal of a society grappling with the horrors of war and the search for honor and truth amid personal turmoil.