In the spring of 1975, near the time of Saigon’s final collapse, I received a long, disjointed letter
in which Bowker described the problem of finding a meaningful use for his life after the war. He
had worked briefly as an automotive parts salesman, a janitor, a car wash attendant, and a
short-order cook at the local A&W fast-food franchise. None of these jobs, he said, had lasted
more than ten weeks. He lived with his parents, who supported him, and who treated him with
kindness and obvious love. At one point he enrolled in the junior college in his hometown, but
the course work, he said, seemed too abstract, too distant, with nothing real or tangible at stake,
certainly not the stakes of a war. He dropped out after eight months. He spent his mornings in
bed. In the afternoons, he played pickup basketball at the Y, and then at night he drove around
town in his father’s car, mostly alone, or with a sixpack of beer, cruising.
In this passage, Tim O’Brien introduces the reader to his muse for this entire book. To
begin, he transports us back to the spring of 1975, near the time of Saigon’s final collapse. This
introduction is an allusion to a bad time for the Vietnamese during the Vietnam War. It also is an
example of foreshadowing, as the events that led to Saigon’s final collapse were destructive and
tragic, however, the final product (the fall of Saigon) was good, because it meant that the
Vietnam War was over and the American soldiers (who had been fighting) could finally come
home. This is also an example of parallelism, because the spring is oftentimes a time of rebirth ,
and this opening sentence contains the word collapse, which is the opposite of rebirth. This is
another way that the author creates a background for his story. The author also uses excellent
diction to show that he cares very much about Norman Bowker, and that he blames himself in
part for Norman’s inability to find ‘normalcy.’ He also uses isocolon in his use of ‘too abstract...
too distant’ and ‘who supported... who treated.’ This is another way of creating a sense of
desperation.
The author uses excellent diction to convey his feelings for Norman. When he uses
words such as ‘long, disjointed’ it conveys desperation to the audience, and that is precisely
what Norman Bowker is, desperate. Tim O’Brien, the author, also uses many words with
negative connotations. These increase the desperation and depression that is in this passage.
To further develop his tone toward Norman Bowker, O’Brien uses specific examples to appeal
to our emotions. By stating that he ‘lived with his parents’, O’Brien is attempting to create a
sense of pathos in all. When I know that I feel bad for someone, and realize how bad their life is
when I am informed that they are in their twenties, and still live at home.
Tim O’Brien uses cataloguing to further Norman’s sad story. O’Brien catalogues all of
the jobs that Bowker has attempted (from an automotive parts salesman to a short-order cook),
but failed at. This develops a strong sense of pathos in the reader, because we can all relate to
how hard a job can be. Throughout this passage, Tim includes many references to Norman
Bowker’s family, or home life. This entire passage creates the life of this book. It establishes the
writers reason for writing, and helps the reader to understand what hardships veterans returning
after the Vietnam War went through.