Summary Vs. Analysis

“On the Rainy River”

            This is a story that was never told before, until now. It was June of 1968, the 17^th to be exact, when Tim O’Brien’s world would change. He was a normal 21-year-old boy, working for a meat packing plant in Worthington, Minnesota at the time. Although he was politically naïve, fighting an American war in Vietnam seemed all-wrong to him. So when he received his draft notice he could not help but become scared, worried, uncertain, and any other feeling that might come across a young man who had never seen the harsh reality of war before. The first thought that came across to him was to run, run far, and fast, and never look back. This is precisely why he was ashamed to tell this story till now.

            Canada was his first thought. The border lay a few hundred miles north, and it would only be hours before he would reach his destination. He set off north, and just drove. O’Brien reached an old fishing lodge called the “Tip Top Lodge,” where his life changed for good. He would spend the next six days here with only one friend by his side, Elroy Berdahl, who was the proud owner of the lodge. Although Elroy didn’t say much, he is responsible for changing Tim’s life. He offered a helping hand, a warm meal, and a shoulder to lean on, knowing deep down the situation that Tim was facing was a difficult one to understand, or perhaps it was one he knew himself. Elroy asked no questions and expected no answers. He sheltered the young and scared O’Brien and they built a strong bond that Tim would never forget. O’Brien spent those six days hiking, playing scrabble, fishing, boating, and helping Elroy prepare the lodge for winter. After his stay at the lodge was through Tim would return home, and then to Vietnam, where he became a soldier. Tim states at the end of this story, “I survived, but it’s not a happy ending. I was a coward. I went to the war” (61).   

            O’Brien believes he is a coward for going to war. Isn’t fighting for our country something one should be proud of? In this case going against your morals becomes a question of whether or not your willing to fight for what you believe, or shy away and do what everyone else thinks is morally correct. O’Brien ran for those six days because he felt better then this war. He felt that “Certain blood was being shed for uncertain reasons” (40). Elroy becomes a significant part of the story because at no time did he question O’Brien’s morals or reasons for being at the lodge. Possibly because he is a symbol of a soldier who did what everyone else wanted and regretted it at one point in his life, knowing deep down what Tim was running from, hoping that he would be a man that would fight for what he believed, stepping outside of what everyone else expected. It could have been possible that if O’Brien would have not chosen to conform and go to war he would gain more respect and gratitude than taking the approach everyone wanted for him. The question is not what makes you a man but more of what makes you an individual in this story. As Tim O’Brien looks back he does feel as though he is a good man, I am sure of that, but does he view himself as being an individual who believes in himself enough to be willing to fight for his freedoms and judgments. We are all capable of doing what is expected of us, but are we all capable of doing the unexpected? I believe Elroy was hoping that Tim would do the unexpected and that is why he gave him so many opportunities to better throughout the story. So much of our day to day is based on conformations and pleasing others. We are judged to no end when we step outside of the box and do what we feel is right or what we choose to stand by, this is something that is so hard to grasp. Individuality is so much more respected. Doing the unexpected is so widely respected. The main message of this story is that no matter who the person encouraging you is, if there is something you stand against or do not believe in, do not, under any circumstances, conform to please them, because in the long run, even though you pleased them, you did not please yourself. Although O’Brien pleased everyone for his time served in Vietnam, he returned home and is still disappointed in his decision because he knows it was not one that stood by his morals and beliefs.

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Here I have inserted a link to Vietnam was stories. It was a pretty harsh and unreal war, and the stories are a good outlet to better understand these times and these men: http://www.3rdmarines.net/Vietnam_War_stories.htm

   

O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1990. Print.