always do what they feel is right‚ this is simply untrue. People will always follow societal norms because they are the backbone of society and what people feel most comfortable doing. A piece of literature that exemplifies this On the Rainy River by Tim O’Brien; a short story that describes the events that occur after a young man is given a draft notice for the Vietnam War. Throughout the story he struggles with whether or not
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In the story “Ambush” by Tim O’Brien‚ it is a story about a soldier having a conversation with his daughter. In the conversation‚ you can see some of the soldier weaknesses‚ strengths‚ and how his actions affected the story. Next‚ the soldier weakness are shown. The soldier in the story has a conversation with his daughter. His daughter asked “have you ever killed anybody” and the soldier lied to her to protect his reputation to his daughter. He didn’t want his daughter to think he’s a murder so
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In life there are choices people would have to make every day: To go in or out‚ to leave or stay‚ to move on or remain in the past‚ to keep or to erase‚ to live or die – these type of choices are the things Tim O’Brien carried when his daughter‚ Kathleen‚ asked why he writes about Vietnam and later suggested that he should forget about the war. Exploring the secret passageways of fragmented memories of O’Brien‚ not only struck with his intricately crafted mind of the past‚ but the feeling of being
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Julius Nevin 11/13/11 Eaten Alive Some things in life become part of you. People‚ places‚ feelings; you can become so close that you are one. But sometimes‚ these things can consume you; swallow you whole. In Tim O’Brien’s novel‚ The Things They Carried‚ many characters become one with the land of Vietnam. Vietnam consumes characters in different ways‚ but it always results in a character’s unity with the land. Unity is defined as “the state of being one; oneness”. Kiowa physically becomes
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“On the Rainy River” by Tim O’Brien is the best short story in the collection because of its’ great character development‚ plot‚ and theme. This story is about how the author dealt with himself and his frustrations before heading off to the Vietnam War. It is very rare for veterans to talk about their fear before departing for combat‚ whereas the narrator which in this case is the author explained the dread and dismay he felt in extreme detail making the plot meaningful. For example‚ the narrator
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In the story “The Man Killed” By Tim O’Brien‚ the narrator stares in silence at the man he has just murdered. He imagines all sorts of things and describes every part of him‚ from the blood running out of his wounds to his dainty long fingers. He‚ then starts telling us about his life and visualizes his past‚ present and future. The narrator envisions this man of My Khe as a scholar‚ not a fighter; he believes he is someone who went to war only to fulfill his patriotic duty. During this whole
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The truth about war In the short story “Ambush”‚ the author Tim O’Brien implies that the struggles of surviving soldiers can gravely impact their lives: In the short story it states “It was a difficult moment‚ but I did what seemed right‚ which was to say “of course not‚”” (O’Brien 1222). This quote indicates he was not comfortable being honest with his daughter‚ he decided it was best to keep the actual truth‚ so she would not see him in a different light. Despite the traumatic experiences‚ soldiers
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Confessions of an Embarrassed Soldier Tim O’Brien’s personal short story‚ “On the Rainy River‚” evokes an inner struggle to serve‚ or to “run” to Canada. O’Brien shamefully expresses his own horrific tale of compromise of the draft in the summer of ‘68. At 21 years old‚ “young‚ yes‚ and politically naive‚” he feels “moral confusion” for the decision he has to make. O’Brien’s use of first person narration in his old age‚ evokes a sense of embarrassment which he feels for choosing to fight in
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In ‘‘The Magic Show‚’’ by Tim O’Brien he breaks down a comparison of writing to magic. Early on in O’Brien’s life he discovered that he liked performing magic he felt as if he was making miracles happen. When performing magic the outcome is based on an illusion creating a misleading appearance‚ forming something into a newly impression of reality. In magic the audience should always be wondering how the trick will end and how the magician performed the trick just as with writing an essay you lead
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Many people‚ in some point in their lives will experience a death of a loved one and will try to cope with it as best as they can. In “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien‚ O’Brien talks about his war stories and how he and the soldiers handled the deaths of the soldiers while at war. The soldiers had to deal with the stress‚ sadness‚ and guilt when seeing their partner get killed. O’Brien talks about the different coping mechanisms the soldiers use when facing the death of a fellow comadre. The
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