What metaphors are used in Sergeant Musgrave's Dance by John Arden?

A defining element of both the plot and the theme is set in motion in Act I, Scene II, with the introduction of the strike. Musgrave and his men are drawn into a conflict not of their making. Aside from laying the foundation for the play's central dramatic action, the situation represents the way that soldiers in general, and these men in particular, are forced to fight in wars for purposes other than their own. From a metaphorical, thematic perspective, this is violence done to men's wills, which leads to violence done to other men's bodies.