Simplicity!

"'Well, hey,' the intercom said, 'I'm sure as f*ck not going anywhere. Screwed to a post, for God sake. Go ahead, try me,'" (page 146).

This scene is wonderful. Actually, the entire chapter, "Speaking of Courage," is kind of wonderful. The boy working at the drive-in restaurant reminds me of a bartender. They don't have much to do other than take orders, so listening to boring stories and life problems can become a part of the employee's responsibilities. It made me laugh how interested the boy seemed in Norman Bowker's life when he had no idea who he was or where he came from. I wish Bowker would have taken the time to tell the boy his story. Maybe afterwards, Bowker would have felt better having told someone like he had been longing to do all day long.


Norman Bowker's day is mundane, and O'Brien repeats himself over and over again to show the day's simplicity. The local color O'Brien uses when describing the town, it's landscape, the people and how they celebrate the fourth of July, allowed me to create a mental image of how the town was set up and what every day life was like for its citizens. "The lake divided into two halves...picknickers now waiting for the evening fireworks...four workmen labored in the shadowy red heat..." (page 138-141). The town is almost the opposite of the fields, paddies, forrests, and mortar rounds Bowker had experienced in Vietnam. O'Brien portrayed the differences perfectly when providing the details.