Never-ending contradiction!

"How to Tell a True War Story," contains several events squeezed into one chapter! It is interesting to say the least, but there are a few points that I want to cover.

"When a guy dies, like Curt Lemon, you look away and then look back for a moment and then look away again. The pictures get jumbled; you tend to miss a lot. And then afterward, when you go to tell about it, there is always that surreal seemingness, which makes the story seem untrue, but which in fact represents the hard and exact truth as it seemed," (page 68).

What I have to say does not really have much to do with the book, but I enjoy this quote because I can apply it to my own life. I have been in a total of three car wrecks in the last year and a half. Yes, I know, I am a terrible driver. Actually, I am not a terrible driver! I just get distracted and pay more attention to things other than the road. But anyway! Everytime I get into an accident, I have to file a report and tell the police and my insurance company (which is most likely going to drop me now...) what happened the day of the wreck. I try my best to fit all of the pieces together, but when something scary and tragic happens to you, it is hard to pay attention to all of the details. That is why I understand what O'Brien is trying to say in this confusing quote. I tell the officer what I think happened, because that is how it seemed to me; however, what ACTUALLY happened might be a bit different than the way I saw it.

"War is hell, but that's not half of it, because war is also mystery and terror and adventure and courage and discovery and holiness and pity and despair and longing and love. War is nasty; war is fun. War is thrilling; war is drudgery. War makes you a man; war makes you dead," (page 79).

This entire quote is a juxtaposition. He associates war with entertainment and thrill, while saying it is hell and nasty. It is brilliant! Everything he says right here describes the entire novel so far. He demonstrates stories where there is excitement and where there is depression and so on and so on. War itself is a juxtaposition or a contradiction, which is why I enjoy war stories and movies. There is never a predictable ending!

To be continued...