6. Inferences about the narrator

"On the Rainy River"

1. The narrator does not see himself as heroic, even 20 years after the Vietnamese War.

"All of us, I suppose, like to believe that in a moral emergency we will behave like the heroes of our youth, bravely and forthrightly, without thought of personal loss or discredit."

2. The narrator was anti-war during the late 60's, and due to that, had an extremely difficult time deciding whether or not he should go to war.

"... I was drafted to fight a war I hated. I was twenty-one years old. Young, yes, and politically naive, but even so the American war in Vietnam seemed to me wrong."

3. The narrator went to war because he feared what his society would think of him if he didn't.

"I was afraid of walking away from my own life, my friends and my family, my whole history, everything that mattered to me. I feared losing the respect of my parents. I feared the law. I feared the ridicule and censure."

"The Ghost Soldiers"

1. The narrator highly respects and appreciates Rat Kiley.

"Thank God for Rat Kiley. Every so often, he trotted back to check me out. Which took courage."

2. After the narrator is no longer doing field work, he misses the fear and adventure, although that was his main concern before he came to war.

"In an odd way, though, there were times when I missed the adventure, even the danger, of the real war out in the boonies... The presence of death and danger has a way of bringing you fully awake. It makes thinks vivid..."

3. The narrator wants to seek revenge on Bobby Jorgenson for not treating him urgently and making him go into shock.

"... think up ways to make Bobby Jorgenson feel exactly what I felt. I wanted to hurt him."

2. Semi-Truths

To an incoming 1102 student who has to read The Things They Carried, I would say to not let the word "truth" even enter your brain until the middle of the book. However, even when you do start thinking about it, don't ponder it. Just accept the truths in the book for what they are: Semi-truths. Some aspects of the book may be real, others may feel completely real, yet aren't. If you focus too much of your attention on what things are true and what things aren't, you will lose sight of what the author is trying to convey. Pay special attention to the emotional-truth hiding between the lines of every story told.

4. Favorites/Least Favorites

My favorite story in the book was probably Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong mostly due to the fact that it was so... human. It dealt with layers of human emotions starting with longing, then with love, and ending with heartache. Also, it showed a side of the war we hadn't yet investigated: how it thoroughly changed people. In Alpha Company during the war, no one seemed to change so drastically. Maybe they matured and grew up a little, but no one completely changed their way of life and personality.

My least favorite story was The Things They Carried. I understood the message: the things they carried were both literal and emotional. However, the first story of the book is never my favorite because it is usually very confusing, and you are still not quite into the reading process. It was also one of the longer stories in the book, which I felt was unnecessary because it seemed repetitive.

I sympathize with Kiowa the most because he seemed like such an honest, down-to-earth, hardworking person. He always wanted to help when someone was feeling down. He was the one who carried everyone's guilt and sadness. Also, the way he died was far more horrid than any of the other soldiers.

I dislike Azar's character the most. His joking and immature personality never changes throughout the novel. He is quite a flat character. He said some things at inappropriate times, like when O'Brien killed a man and Kiowa was trying to make him calm down.

7. After reading this book..

I can honestly say that this book actually did change my view on "truth." I always expected the truth to mean the obvious. However, this story taught me that the truth doesn't necessarily mean that the events in the book were reality, but that the feeling and emotions drawn in to the stories were real. Even if the story is totally made up, I'm sure that some Vietnam veterans can relate to most of them. Maybe not with the actual events, but with the way the author feels and conveys how other members on his platoon feel. I believe that this is a true war novel due to the fact that the author, Tim O'Brien, really is a veteran, and he infused his memories and feelings into the characters he formed.

Based on a true story

One of my favorite movies that is "based on a true story" is Sybil. The movie is about a girl named Sybil Dorsett who's childhood was horrendous, and therefore has over thirteen different personalities. The fact that it is "based on a true story" makes it more terrifying and definitely makes it more realistic. At the end of the movie, Sybil is cured of her multiple personalities with the help of her psychiatrist. In reality, Sybil had WAY more than thirteen personalities and was never cured. In fact, she moved into the house right next door to her psychiatrist. For me, the words "based on a true story" enhanced the movie experience because it made it sounds like it was the whole truth.