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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 15 page comparison between the above mentioned novels by Tim O'Brien. In these novels, O'Brien examines feelings and uncertainties that speak to the heart of being human and leave the reader thinking, rather then feeling that all their questions have been answered. O'Brien's artistry encompasses all of the nuances and pathos of the human condition, but set within a framework that coincides with the period that formed the crux of his own experience‹the Vietnam War. The writer specifically examines the novels relative to O'Brien's use of structure. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Page Count:
15 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_90obrien.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
a novel about a war is like calling Moby Dick a novel about whales" (Herzog 80). In these novels, OBrien examines feelings and uncertainties that speak to the heart of
being human and leave the reader thinking, rather then feeling that all their questions have been answered. OBriens artistry encompasses all of the nuances and pathos of the human condition,
but set within a framework that coincides with the period that formed the crux of his own experience?the Vietnam War. As pointed out by Herzog, with these two novels,
OBrien gives new direction to the format of the war novel (79). In Going After Cacciato, OBrien incorporates an intricate interplay of past, present and future time that mixes fact
with fantasy as he utilizes both form and content to create his own unique psychological landscape. The unusual form of this novel comes from chapters that are purely fantasy; however,
because these experiences feel "real" to the protagonist, they are just s real as anything else in the novel. In The Things They Carried, he achieves the effect of
an integrated novel out of a collection of short stories that include commentaries, confessions, character sketches, and notes. What may appear to be a rather jumbled form in both of
these novels proves to be the perfect medium for reflecting the chaotic psychological landscape of a soldiers tortured psyche as well as the "political, moral and military disorder related to
Americas Vietnam experience" (Herzog 79). Nevertheless, OBrien has insisted on numerous occasions that these novels do not represent an effort on his part to confront his experiences during the
Vietnam War. He has said that he has never written "for therapy or consciously for catharsis, or any of that stuff. It was just that the stories were so wonderful
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