Exploration 6
So far my favorite story from The Things They Carried is "Enemies". I like this chapter a lot because I feel like it gives the readers a good feel for how easy your sanity could be lost in Vietnam. With guns and weapons surrounding you, keeping your sanity in tack is a very important. Evidence from the book this is when Strunk couldn't stop laughing and said "The man's crazy," "I stole his f*cking jackknife". This is important to me because you could literally end up going insane over nothing. Getting into arguments and fights within your team and allies can jeopardize your chances of safely coming home to an extent. Strunk wasn't even really worried about the situation meanwhile Jensen was about to go insane.
My favorite character is Strunk, I like him because he will mess with you and fight with you over something he is fully aware is his fault. Even losing a fight with a fellow solider he can become friends with the guy shortly after.
In the story Speaking of Courage, Norman Bowker returns to Iowa after the war. On a 4th of July night, he drives around a lake and notices he has no where else to go, he has nowhere else to even be. He reminisces on old memories and drives around the lake again and again. He reminisces old memories, things that happened in high school, and older girlfriends. He remembers things from the war, and just wants someone who can relate to him, and talk to him. He wonders how his father would feel about him not acting on the courage he though he'd have.
The writing that stuck out most to me as most meaningful would be the line, “They carried the sky. The whole atmosphere, they carried it, the humidity, the monsoons, the stink of fungus and decay, all of it, they carried gravity.” I like this quote a lot because I believe it is a very short brief quote that can summarize the whole story. With just that line you get a connection and it can really place o image in your head about what these men went through and what it was like. Another thing that brings bigger meaning to the quote is that the things the men "carried" cannot actually be carried. I feel like this makes the men look more epic and shows that Veitnam was not easy.
The writing that stuck out most to me as most meaningful would be the line, “They carried the sky. The whole atmosphere, they carried it, the humidity, the monsoons, the stink of fungus and decay, all of it, they carried gravity.” I like this quote a lot because I believe it is a very short brief quote that can summarize the whole story. With just that line you get a connection and it can really place o image in your head about what these men went through and what it was like. Another thing that brings bigger meaning to the quote is that the things the men "carried" cannot actually be carried. I feel like this makes the men look more epic and shows that Veitnam was not easy.
The story "Enemies" was also a strong favorite of mine, and while it was not long by any means, only a few pages, the story it told was powerful and meaningful to stay with you. It told the simple message of what war can do to men but in a way where everyone who read the chapter understood the meaning.
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