The first step we are going to take to know the meaning of the term deserter is to discover its etymological origin. In this case, we can state that it is a word that derives from Latin, exactly from "desertor, desertoris", which can be translated as "he who abandons."
He who deserts is classified as a deserter . The action of deserting can refer to letting go of ideals , moving away from a cause or, in the case of a soldier, abandoning his flag .
In the military, desertion is a crime . For this reason, the deserter can be tried by military law and suffer different kinds of sanctions: even, depending on the case, the death penalty.
A soldier is considered a deserter when he abandons his position or his duty in the context of a war . Suppose that, in the middle of an invasion or battle, a soldier decides to withdraw from his assigned position and leaves the conflict zone. This situation makes him a deserter.
In relation to this meaning, we have to state that there is a novel that has the term in question in its title. We are referring to the book "The Deserter", written by Siegfried Lenz. It was published 65 years after its creation, because in 1952 it was seen as an unpatriotic work.
Specifically, it tells the story of some soldiers from the Wehrmacht unit, whose mission is to guarantee a train line on what is the Eastern Front. These are abandoned by their own troops, which will lead each one to try to think about different aspects to keep a clear mind and let reality sink in.
Among all of these is the young Walter Proska who will consider not only who the real enemy is but also whether conscience or duty is more important. What's more, he won't even get out of his head a young Polish woman he has fallen in love with who answers to the name of Wanda.
Likewise, there is also an American film from 1966 titled "The Deserter" and which was directed by Raoul Lévy. Montgomery Clift, Hardy Krüger and Roddy McDowall lead the cast of this film about espionage during the Cold War.
The person who refuses to comply with a military order may make a conscientious objection , explaining that he or she refuses to comply with the corresponding service for some moral or religious reason. Depending on the treatment given to this measure, the objector may be considered a deserter.
The idea of school dropout , on the other hand, refers to the abandonment of school by a student. It is not common, however, for a student who leaves school to be called a dropout.
In colloquial language , finally, a deserter is called a subject who stops visiting a place he frequently attended or who no longer accompanies those who were his fellow militants . For example: «There is the deserter! He has not been to the club for months" , "The Conservative Party decided to formally expel the defecting militant" , "A deserter from the guerrilla group provided useful information to the government authorities" .