Sunday, February 16, 2014

Love and War

 
            In Tim O’Brien’s story he writes, “There is always that surreal seemingness, which makes the story seem untrue, but which in fact represents the hard and exact truth as it seemed.” What is interesting about O’Brien’s writing is his definition of the truth. It is not recalling events exactly as they played out. It is telling a story exactly as it seemed to you at the time, even if it seems outrageous and impossible. Moreover, O’Brien’s war story wants the reader to empathize with the characters. It doesn’t matter if the baby buffalo and the mountains and the river are all made up. Everything’s made up. But the feelings that Tim O’Brien as the author wants to evoke in readers are real and raw.
            On page 81 O’Brien writes, “It wasn’t a war story. It was a love story.” Although this quote specifically directs the water buffalo incident, I thought the narrator was hinting at more than just the water buffalo, but all the stories in the novel. And the more I continued reading, I started thinking that maybe both The Things They Carried and the water buffalo story aren't war stories or love stories.Throughout the novel we are told of Mark Fossie’s relationship with his girlfriend, the death of Rat Kiley’s best friend, the young man who Tim O’Brien (the character) kills, and much more. Though love is a theme in this story, which takes place during the Vietnam War, The Things They Carried is about bits and pieces of all these characters’ stories. It doesn’t matter if the stories aren’t “real.” These stories elicit real emotion in readers, especially in readers who have experienced war firsthand. They’re about love, war, and everything in between.
           

2 comments:

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  2. I completely agree that the quote, "It wasn't a war story. It was a love story" also applies to all of the stories in O'Brien's novel. Ultimately I believe most of the novel is based on the love the men have for one another and the sacrifices they make for each other and their country.
    Love is a complicated and messy emotion. It isn't always the stereotypical "Valentines-Day" kind of love people always refer to. Love can be based on respect and honor. It can also mix with hatred and jealousy and fear.
    O'Brien writes of cases where the men help, mourn, and encourage one another. And even in his chapter "The Man I Killed", O'Brien honors the man from Vietnam by talking about his life and making him into a real person, not just an enemy. He takes the time to love his enemy. Maybe O'Brien wants to demonstrate that the important, "true" parts of war aren't the times when people do or experience what is expected, but those times in between when the unimaginable happens. Like loving one's enemy.
    Another moment in the novel when O'Brien focuses on love instead of war is when he thinks back to Linda and her brain tumor. Instead of discussing her battle with the brain tumor and her struggle to stay alive in this war with her health, O'Brien remembers the lovely parts about her. He remembers how beautiful and real their love was, even at their young age. He even continues to experience her love after she is gone through his dreams. He is able to keep her and his love for her alive through the stories in his dreams, as he tries to do when representing other characters who were taken by the war.

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