"For me, though, it did matter. It still does. I should've stepped in; fourth grade is no excuse. Besides, it doesn't get easier with time, and twelve years later, when Vietnam presented much harder choices, some practice at being brave might've helped a little," [page 221].
Well. Raise your hand if you think the end of this novel is depressing!
Linda. She was barely even mentioned until the very last chapter, yet she was quite a large part of O'Brien's childhood. I'm assuming he is married since he has a daughter, but from what I recall he doesn't mention his wife [correct me if I'm wrong?].
I think O'Brien brought her into this story as a symbol. A symbol for strength, courage, kindness, love, and struggle. O'Brien claims he truly loved her at nine years old, and that he still loves her to this day. If Linda would have lived, who knows if she and O'Brien would have worked, but the thought that they might still be together is uplifting.
It amazes me that O'Brien truly believes he found love at nine years old. I can't even begin to define love at my age right now. That's a heavy burden for a nine year old. The unusual thing is that I can actually believe that O'Brien loved her and knew that he did when he was nine.
Altogether, I actually enjoyed this book. After I finished my previous entries, I took a few hours off of blogging so I could think about the book more as a whole. It had elements that scared me because it was so graphic and real even though I was reading words in print. The stories were vivid and painted a picture in my mind. At the end, I'm still questioning certain stories...but I guess that's what makes an author good right? Still able to raise questions even though the novel is complete.
On to the next one...
Well. Raise your hand if you think the end of this novel is depressing!
Linda. She was barely even mentioned until the very last chapter, yet she was quite a large part of O'Brien's childhood. I'm assuming he is married since he has a daughter, but from what I recall he doesn't mention his wife [correct me if I'm wrong?].
I think O'Brien brought her into this story as a symbol. A symbol for strength, courage, kindness, love, and struggle. O'Brien claims he truly loved her at nine years old, and that he still loves her to this day. If Linda would have lived, who knows if she and O'Brien would have worked, but the thought that they might still be together is uplifting.
It amazes me that O'Brien truly believes he found love at nine years old. I can't even begin to define love at my age right now. That's a heavy burden for a nine year old. The unusual thing is that I can actually believe that O'Brien loved her and knew that he did when he was nine.
Altogether, I actually enjoyed this book. After I finished my previous entries, I took a few hours off of blogging so I could think about the book more as a whole. It had elements that scared me because it was so graphic and real even though I was reading words in print. The stories were vivid and painted a picture in my mind. At the end, I'm still questioning certain stories...but I guess that's what makes an author good right? Still able to raise questions even though the novel is complete.
On to the next one...
July 9, 2010 at 7:32 PM
I wrote a blog very similar to this one. I have to agree that I don't understand how Tim ws so sure he was in love at the age of nine, but if he was, all the power to him!