Personal Narrative: When Is My Son Coming Home

Henry is drafted to fight in the Vietnam war and returns a very different person. Lyman says, “When he came home, though, Henry was very different, and I’ll say this: the change was no good” (Erdrich 4). Henry becomes transfixed on the television set. At one point, Henry bites his lip so hard that blood pours from his wound down his chin and he does nothing but continue to watch the television (Erdrich 4).

Throughout the story of this one deployment, there are parts where the author talks about his early life as well as some parts of his earlier days in the Army. The author puts these Stories in to the book in an intriguing way to help explain why and how the author ended up where he did.

Young people often do not know what to expect of the future. They do not know how to act when something unexpected comes along, and their actions are based on what they do know; usually limited, biased information. This idea is central to the short story, ʺWar,ʺ by Timothy Findley. The young boy, Neil Cable, narrates the day he found out his father had joined the army. He speaks of his actions, feelings, and confusion surrounding that day. At first glance, his actions are all too often misinterpreted as violence and hatred, but after careful consideration, one can see that they are merely his way of dealing with the troubling news. He has not experienced enough in his lifetime to have a true understanding of war, and acts upon what

Life can bring unexpected events that individuals might not be prepared to confront. This was the case in the short story “On The Rainy River” written by Tim O’Brien. Young Tim is drafted to the military to fight the American War in Vietnam. He faces the conflict of whether he should or should not go to war after being drafted. The thought of giving up the future he has worked so hard for and instead fight a war “for uncertain reasons” terrifies him. He must make the agonizing decision of whether to pursue his personal desire and in turn be shamed by society or conform, sacrificing his ideals in the process.

Going through an era when the Vietnam War was a smash hit in your town, many high school senior boys would be drafted out if their number was on the list of people. The men drafted had to leave behind their families and aspirations. Tim O’Brien uses different perspectives in The Things They Carried to show if something tragic happens in life, consequently dealing with it may be hard. Moving on will help in the future.

Beginning my love of reading an early age, I was never the type of child who was drawn to fictional stories. As an 8 year-old child in West Virginia, I was recognized by the local library for my love of biographies, autobiographies and recollections of world events. This love has continued throughout my adult life, desiring to read novels such as “We Were Soldiers Once…and Young” by Lt. Gen. Harold G. Moore rather than watch the major motion picture “We Were Soldiers” starring Mel Gibson. Even though the motion picture received multiple awards, when reading the recollection of Mr. Moore’s accounts, the feeling of loss, distress, anxiety and fear can be felt in each word that he has written while reliving this horrendous war.

The returning of a dramatic event disables a soldier to adapt accordingly to everyday life. Ones conscious of reality is infringed upon Posttraumatic experiences of warfare, which unleashes an outbreak of inhumane actions directed towards existence and significant others. As the short story progresses after the event of the Vietnam War, the narrator says referring to Henry that:

The first week at his military school, Wes tried several times to went home. He had access to do a phone call to whoever he wanted to talk, if he would be able to convince that person in five minutes, then he could go back to home. On the phone his mother said, “Wes you don’t go anywhere until you give this place a try” (Moore 95). Wes wasn’t persuaded at first, but the words his mother told him must have stuck. He started doing better in school because he realized what his family has sacrificed in order for him to be there. Gradually, he became sergeant of platoon, a cadet master sergeant, and the youngest senior noncommissioned officer in the entire corps. Even though he was forced to stay in military school; slowly he changed his outlook in military school.

the reader to join him in his vivid description of what life as a soldier

Not every man who 's fought in a war planned on doing so. In fact, not all of them even want to. It 's rare to find enough people voluntarily willing to lay down their lives for their country, so more often than not militaries used what we would call “citizen soldiers.” Citizen soldiers are exactly what they sound like, regular citizens taken from society and turned into people capable of serving in the military. Although it may seem obvious when plainly written out, citizen soldiers had vastly different experiences compared to career soldiers, and Stephen Ambrose attempted to pin down that specific experience in his book Citizen Soldier. Ambrose uses oral interviews from World War II veterans and other materials to explain the experiences of the common American soldier who served in WWII between D-Day and the eventual surrender of the German forces. However, when examining his book, it 's important to ask how successful Ambrose was in painting an accurate picture of this kind of soldier 's life during his service. Is the information he uses specific to the men who served in Europe, or can it also be linked back to the soldiers in the Pacific? This paper will evaluate his work by comparing it to oral interviews from WWII veterans both from the same areas that Ambrose 's veterans serve in and in locations not included in his work.

The Youth bumps into the tall soldier, who was in his regiment, who was wounded during the battle. The tall soldier keeps talking about his fear of being left on the road to be driven over by carts and soldiers. He asks Henry to pull his body out of the road but the tall soldier ends up running to a clear plain and dies there. This must be a dire situation that takes a toll unto Henry, watching a fellow comrade who he had been with since enlisting’ die before his mere eyes. “Just to pull me out of the road? I’d do it for you, wouldn’t I, Henry?” (Crane, 1957,

The author experienced the culture shock all new recruits receive during their initial basic training. James’s physical conditioning prior to enlisting into the Army proved to be a valuable asset, due to the physically demanding rigors associated with military training. The author’s physical presence and life experiences equated to admiration from the younger recruits. Affectionate memories were made teaching the younger recruits exercises and submission holds during down time from training. It was at this point in the author’s life that he knew he wanted a profession in which he could help others. Upon completion of Basic Training, and Advanced Individual training, James saw his parents again, whom he had not seen in several years. The author was pleased to see his ever loving mother who was radiating in pride of her son’s life journey thus far. The author’s father stated that it was about time his son had done something worth meaning. During James’s adolescence this comment may have

Page 120-121 “...the young man would not have wanted to be a soldier...try not to grow up too fast.”

When people think of the military, they often think about the time they spend over in another country, hoping they make it back alive. No one has ever considered the possibility that they may have died inside. Soldiers are reborn through war, often seeing through the eyes of someone else. In “Soldier’s home” by Ernest Hemingway, the author illustrates how a person who has been through war can change dramatically if enough time has passed. This story tells of a man named Harold (nick name: Krebs) who joined the marines and has finally come back after two years. Krebs is a lost man who feels it’s too complicated to adjust to the normal way of living and is pressured by his parents.

1918, the war was over and me and mama were so excited to see papa. We drove to the train station where all the families were coming to meet their families again. We arrived just as the train did. I told mama to pick me up so I could see. I raised up above every ones head and I was waiting for a man that I looked like, to come out of the train door. Instead i saw two men is black jackets coming towards me and mama. Mama put me down and asked to men whats wrong. Her face turned from joy to fear. The men told us that that papa was still in the hospital from multiple bullet wounds. They said that we