Motivation

Though it was funny in a way, I still thought chapter 20, Ghost Soldiers, was sort of creul. This time O'Brien depicts himself as revenge seeking pyscho. In this chapter O'Brien seeks revenge on Jorgenson for failing to help him properly after being shot. He sets up a detailled prank along with his friend Azar in order to scare Jorgenson. O'Brien admits completely that it was wrong- he even admits to having second thoughts about the whole idea. But he had the motivation- which caused him to make his move. "In the end, all i felt was that coldness down inside my chest. Number one: the guy had almost killed me. Number two: there had to be consequences" (pg 191). The motivation behind his plan was that Jorgenson had failed him in his time of need. Although Jorgenson may have deserved some sort of retaliation or anger from O'Brien, I really thought what O'Brien and Azar did was over the top.

Understatement vs Exaggeration

In chapter 20 I was able to discover an example of an understatement as well as an exaggeration. The understatement I found was after the author has been shot he hears the nurses discussing his injury. "Diaper rash, the nurses called it" (pg 182). O'Brien follows their statement by saying that their comment only makes him hate Jorgenson even more (Jorgenson is the doctor that wasnt able to treat him correctly after he was shot).
On the other end of the spectrum, in the next paragraph of this chapter the author exaggerates when describing danger. "You could still die of course- once a month we'd get hit with mortar fire- but you could also die in the bleachers at Met Stadium in Minneapolis, bases loaded, Harmon Killebrew coming to the plate" (pg 183). Although i suppose it is possible to die at Met Stadium, it is highly unlikely. The author uses this exaggeration to relate the sense of safety the soldiers had where he was now stationed (after being shot twice) to the sense of safety people have just about anywhere they go. No matter where a person goes there is always a possibitlity of danger. I chose to blog about these two examples because I found it interesting that O'Brien was able to use two opposite techniques so close together.

Stories

I love writing. Okay- maybe not required writing (like this right here, im not so enthused about it, sorry). But in general, writing for me is an outlet. It's a way to get things off my mind and off my chest. It helps me breathe a little lighter. I believe that O'Brien feels almost the exact opposite. on pg 172 he says "What Stories can do, I guess, is make things present. I can look at things I never looked at. I can attach faces to grief and love and pity and God. I can be brave. I can make myself feel again." What i gather from this is that O'Brien writes to relive the past. Unlike myself, O'Brien writes to revisit all the feelings. I find that kind of odd though because his stories are about the war- and for me atleast, I think it would be hard to revisit some of the memories he has captured in this story. O'Brien even sates on pg 171 "I want you to feel what I felt." Which makes me wonder if he writes these stories for himself or for his readers.. but really i think its a combination of both.

Metaphor

"A lost ball, he thought. Tired players searchign through the rouguh, sweeping back and forth in long systematic patterns" (pg 160). This metaphor is found in chapter17 as Lt Cross' men are searching for the lost body of their friend Kiowa. As the soldiers wade through a muddy field knee-deep in water, Lt. Cross imagines they are like golfers searching for their ball in the rough. This metaphor is really effective because it portrays the idea of hopelessness and longing to accomplish the impossible. An unending and annoying requirement of golf- which may be the reason why I'm not so fond of the sport. Similar to finding a needle in a haystack. But in the end, the soldiers are able to do just that. They find the body of Kiowa (or atleast what was left of it). It was really sad how O'Brien described the way that the search became less about finding Kiowa and more about being able to get out of that field. I think this metaphor helped me understand how the soldiers were feeling; aggrevated, tired, and doubtful just as a losing golfer would feel as he searches for his lost ball.

Mood

"It had been a hard night. Maube the worst ever. The rains had fallen without stop, and the Song Tra Bong had overglowed its banks, and the much had now risen thigh-deep in the field along the river. A low, gray mist hovered over the land. Off to the west there was thinder, soft little moaning sounds, and the monsoons seemed to be a loasting element of the war. The eighteen soldiers moved in silence" (pg 155). Through these few sentences, O'Brien effectively sets the mood for this chapter. Chapter 17 is one of the most negative and depressing chapters within the novel. It describes the death of Kiowa and the recovering of his mangled body. I think the way the author introduces this chapter really sets the reader up for the rest of its contents. Usually I dont feel too empathetic when reading books or watching movies; however, this book was different for me because it was real. Even more than that, the person telling the story was there. War doesn't seem real to me because i have never experienced it- so when O'Brien describes every detail about the weather and physical stress and every other negative aspect of the war, it catches my attention. When O'Brien sets a mood with all of his detail it makes the story come to life. Not only does it help me envision the events taking place, but it also helps me get into the mindset of what is happening.

Lonliness

I would imagine that a great deal of soldiers count down the days until they return home to their families. All that time away, I'm sure, really must make them miss home. What really struck me in this story is that even though they miss home, some soldiers return and their lives go downhill from there. For Norman Bowker anyways, that is exactly how things went. It was hard for him to get back into the routine of a normal life. "The war was over and there was no place in particular to go." (pg 131)It seems as if life as he had known for so long was gone. And even though he was back at home, he had no one to share his stories and memories with. Atleast Tim O'Brien had found a way to relieve himself of the memories by writing them down. Bowker however was stuck with just thoughts in his head. At one point Bowker actually considers confiding in a car-hop at a local A&W restaurant (Which by the way has nothing on Edwards Drive-In or their awesome carhops :)). To me, it's just really sad to see that someone who risks their life in Vietnam can live and still come home with a spirit that is dead.

Lies

Chapter 12 starts off with a simple flashback to a moment when Tim O'Brien's daughter asks him if he has ever killed someone in the war. His answer, "Of course not" (pg 125). This, the reader knows, is a lie. I want to know though, why does O'Brien lie to his daughter? Is it because she is too young? Because he wants to protect her from the harsh realities of the world? Or is it to protect himself? To help him sleep at night. Rid him of his guilt. "Sometimes i frogive myself, other times I don't. In the ordinary hours of life I try not to dwell on it, but now and then, when I'm reading a newspaper or just sitting alone in a room, I'll look up and see the young man step out of the morning fog." Whether or not O'Brien lies to make himself feel better or not, i don't think it would make much of a difference. Like I mentioned in my previous blog, if I ever killed someone I'm sure their image would haunt me forever. Lying to myself might make it easy to forget during the day, but I'm sure, just like O'Brien says, there would be moments when that image appears in my mind.