Chapter 14: Style: Why Does Henry Dobbins say Dance Right?

Henry Dobbins says Dance Right to Azar to make him appreciate the culture in Vietnam. Similar to Azar, Henry Dobbins and the other soldiers come to a new culture in which they are not accustomed to. Due to their culture obliviousness, they can only imitate what the locals are doing in attempt to make themselves accepted. Chapter 15: Speaking of Courage What is the significance of Norman Bowkers circling the lake? Norman Bowker circles the lake signifies his confusion and his lack of purpose after war due to the changes that occurs after war. Norman loses his purpose for his survival when he reaches back home as he the circumstances does not allow him to communicate with anyone. The purpose of his survival is to meet Sally, Max Arnold and his dad, they all are not able to communicate with him. What is the significance of the Silver Star? The silver star which is supposed to be a symbol of valor and hope, ironically becomes a symbol of despair and guilt for Norman. He imagines having a conversation with his father about all the medal that he received due to his war effort but missing one medal: the Silver Star. This medal reminds him of the death of Kiowa, and eventually leading him to regret and despair. On page 143, why does the town does not want to know? The town does not want to hear his story as it is not a story of valor. The story that he wants to tell is too grotesque and represents cowardice rather than bravery. The stories that he is about to tell are from his memories and that has become a history. Discuss the exchange between Bowker and Sally Kramer on pages 145-6 Similar to the town not wanting to hear his war storiesSally Kramer does not want to hear Bowkers shit field experience. Sally Kramer is a civilized woman, and havent experienced war; she is innocent. Listening to Bowkers story about the shit field will be unusual and hard for her to discern. What do you make of the intercom incident on pages 151-152? The usage of the war phrases during the intercom conversation: Affirmative, copy clear, Repeat: one Mama, Positive. All done, reminds Norman of his experience during the Vietnam War. It shows that he cannot forget the war even after he got back home.

Chapter 16: Notes What can you say about Notes and metafiction? The chapter notes is all about metafiction; Norman asks Tim to write a story about him in the war. They are both a character in the story but they act as if they are real and that they are making a story. Chapter 17: In the Field Why does the boy remain unnamed? The author does not give the boy a name to signify his disempowerment due to Kiowas death. Similar to Norman lingering in his guilt, this unnamed boy also feels guilty do to his inability to save Kiowa. What is significant about the descriptions of Kiowas rucksack on page 166? The description of Kiowas rucksack is significant because in the shit field, all the soldiers identity are obscured. The content of the rucksack is needed to identify Kiowa. How does the idea of blame operate in this chapter (consider Lt. Crosss role and the passage on page 177) The idea of blame in this chapter have a correlation with the notion of denial. As a lieutenant, Cross is supposed to protect his comrade, but he fails to do so. To cope with his failure, he need to blame someone, or anyone to relieve himself from guilt. Chapter 18 Good Form Discuss the significance of storytelling in this chapter The idea of storytelling conveyed in this chapter blurs the barriers between the happening truth and the story truth. The important part of story telling is not the outcome or the truth, but the transference of the theme of the story to the readers. Chapter 19: Field Trip 1. In Good Form and Field Trip, what role does Kathleen play?

2. Discuss the significance of the narrators return to the field, especially his entry into the water. Tim returned to the shit field to remind himself of the death of his comrade, Kiowa. Although he survived the war, the memories from the war remains. His entry into the water symbolize that he cannot run from the memories as if he has been consumed by Vietnam. Chapter 20: The Ghost Soldiers In Ghost Soldiers, how does the narrators injury impact his relationship with his former group of soldiers/ friends? Tims injury renders him useless in war, eventually to his transfer to Headquarters Company, the battalion supply section. The fact that he cannot step into the war figuratively means that he died during the war. The existence of Tim in Alpha Company has been removed as Sanders says: No [] I guess youre not. Discuss the conflict between the narrator and Bobby Jorgerson. The narrator has an utmost resentment towards Bobby Jorgerson due to his inability to do his job properly, leading Tim to his near death experience. He also renders him useless in war and his reason for being transferred to supply section, consequently losing his war comrades. This sense of loss eventually leads Tim to transfer his anger to Bobby Jorgerson. What is the significance of this chapters title? The chapter title represents the rejection of Tim by his war comrades. Being in the supply section makes him starting to miss the war, but he cannot step into it. He feels the alienation from his comrades, as he becomes a ghost in his friends mind. Read the paragraph on page 209 that begins I was down there with him, inside him I was Namthe horror, the war. Do a close reading of this passage and relate it to the rest of the novel.

Chapter 21: Night Life In Night Life, what happens to Rat Kiley? What is the significance of his experience to the novel as a whole? Rat Kiley feels that he is being bitten by a bug and that it irritates him This signifies that being in the nature for too long drives the soldier into paranoia; Rat Kiley feels as if he has been consumed by the land itself. This idea is related to the Tim and Mary Anne being part of the land; the force of nature slowly devours them, making the soldiers the land itself. Chapter 22: The Lives of the Dead How does the story of Linda fit in with the rest of the novel? The story of Linda is related to the idea of story telling with respect to preservation of memory. Linda feels that she is a book that nobodys reading signifying that without an audience, it is as if Linda is dead forever. Similarly, although Tim writes the story of Timmy, without anyone reading the book, the memory of Timmy is loss forever.