Things They Carried Essay: Rebirth of a Spirit :: Things They Carried Essays

Rebirth of a Spirit in The Things They Carried   Speaking of courage is a story found in Tim O Briens The Things They Carried about a solider named Norman Bowker who has returned home from the Vietnam War. As Bowker circles the towns source of pride he comes to realize that the town that he left so many years ago testament never be the same. While his life was paused by the war, theirs werent. He in addition comes to understand that while the people he once knew have changed that he has also changed. He has been consumed by a war and it will always alter his being.   When Norman Bowker returns to his hometown after the war things seem to have locomote on without him. It seems that while his life was put on pause, his friends and family had moved on to their lives. His simple wish is for the past to be the present once again. He speaks of his friends max Arnold and Sally Kramer. Now, Max was dead and Bowker refers to him as an idea. He confabulations of how things wo uld be different if Max was around to listen to all his stories and how Max would have enjoyed them. The irony is that Max is gone. At one time Bowker had carried a picture of Sally in his wallet. He talked of how he would stop and talk to her when he saw her while driving. He decided that he powerfulness impress her with his jazzledge that he had acquired during the war such as his readiness to predict the time at any point during the day at bottom 10 minutes. He repeatedly said if she was to listen. Just similar the others she did not want to think about the war, it was in the past. Page 143 makes a clear point that The town could not talk, and would not listen.. It (the town) did not know shit about shit, and did not care to know.   As Bowker continues what seems to be a trip back to what is reality he circles the town lake roughly 13 times. This lake is the life of the town and is very symbolic in itself. On one side of the lake the houses are modern, with big porches and picture windows facing the peeing on the opposite side the houses were described as handsome, though slight expensive and on a smaller scale.