War not only claims the most casualties, but also affects individuals both physically and psychologically. This can damage their sense of purpose and identity, which can lead to difficulties in how they relate to others. Art and religion prove to be saviors of these individuals by helping them respond to the effects and consequences of war with valor and resilience that not only helps them cope with stress and pain, but also gives them the opportunity to interact and connect with others. David Roxborough argues that "Ondaatje's method of alternating mythical identity allows for the efficient construction of a panoramic religious picture with widespread mythical meaning." Similarly, Alice Brittan states that "Ondaatje's novel is full of [……] scenes of reading and writing and of characters who revel in marginalia." Both authors agree that Ondaatje's novel The English Patient uses imagery and mythology to explain the atrocities of World War II and to explain that religion and admiration for art attempt to challenge the violent human displacements enabled by war and help transcend the harsh realities of the world. The novel The English Patient hosts four central characters: Almasy, Hana, Caravaggio and Kip whose lives are ravaged by World War II and British colonialism. Almasy, the English patient, receives severe burns while escaping from a “burning plane” that make him resemble “a [burnt] animal, tense and dark” (Ondaatje 6, 41). His injuries prevent him from making any kind of movement. Hana, a twenty-year-old Canadian nurse, is forced to leave her adolescence and enter adulthood at an early age. She loses her father and has to suffer the pain of an abortion... middle of paper... English patient." History of the book and idea of ​​literature 121 (2006): 200-213. PMLA. Network. 20 April 2012. Roxborough, David. “The Gospel of Almasy: Christian Mythology in Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient.” Essays on Canadian Writing 67 (1999): 236. Academic Search Premier. 17 April 2012. Cook, Rufus in Michael Ondaatje's 'The English Patient.' Walter Benjamin's allegorical outlook." University of Toronto Quarterly 70.4 (2001): 902. Premier Academic Research. Network. 23 April 2012. Scobie, Stephen. “The Reading Lesson: Michael Ondaatje and the Patients of Desire.” Essays on Canadian Writing 53 (1994): 92. Academic Search Premier. 27 April. 2012.