Lorraine York observes that "for Findley, this is what the war does: it perverts the natural." This observation will be discussed with respect to the natural elements of earth and fire.

The earth itself is polluted by the war, the dead bodies that decompose in it and the gas used as weapons, like chlorine, that soak into it.

The dugouts and trenches protect the soldiers from direct fire but they can also have a detrimental characteristic. This characteristic is seen when the earth that forms the `Stained Glass dugout' collapses on top of Robert and his friends. Dugout cave-ins were not a rare occurrence in the first World War and often crushed or smothered the soldiers in them.

The naturalness of Robert's life is almost taken away by the earth when he sinks in the mud while trying to cross a dike. He comes very close to drowning...