It seems as though when O'Brian writes about certain traumatic things, mostly death, he gets very repetitive in his writing. For example, in "the Man I Killed," O'Brian repeatedly goes back to how the dead corpse looked. Multiple times he mentioned the star shaped hole where the eye used to be, the cheek that was "peeled back into three ragged stripes," and how the man's fingernails were clean. He is very meticulous in describing the dead body.
Additionally, O'Brian does the same thing in "How to Tell a True War Story," about Curt Lemon's death. He distinctly describes how it looked as though Curt was getting sucked up by the sunlight, and how they had to peel him off of the tree. I find it to be a bit disturbing. Hearing it the first time, I can skim over it and not pay much attention to the gory detail, but by the second time, it's like O'Brian forces his readers to read every little detail. The repetitive nature of his writing makes the stories about death unsettling. Reading his encounters multiple times makes me feel more connected to his emotions which I believe brings his stories to life.
I agree that repetition is something of a signature of O'Briens. It is very effective in emphasising elements of the story that are important or particularly traumatic. I think several other people have linked this to symptoms of PTSD. The repetition of the description of the man he killed was quite poignant, and also allows him to reiterate his own feelings on taking someones life.
ReplyDeleteThis was a great example of O'Brian's use of repetition. In the face of death he seems to add a graceful, beauty presence to it showing his character in a way, which does make the readers connected to his emotions and definitely brings his storeis to life.
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ReplyDeleteI agree that repetition is a very predominant theme in O'Brien's writing. I like how you mentioned that by reading his encounters multiple times it made you feel more connected to his emotions and brings his stories to life. I feel the same way. I also want to add that I think the reason behind his usage of repetition is due to the fact that it is a symptom of PTSD. He goes in depth about the details of certain events and them repeats it multiple times. It's almost as if he is reliving these moments in his head at that exact moment. PTSD is expressed throughout his writing when he experiences nightmares about the war 20 years later, survival guilt, war related depression and anxiety. The reason he confronts all these events that occurred is to resolve some of his chaos and trauma that he still feels from the war.
ReplyDeleteI agree that O'Brien's detailed writing makes his stories come to life and adds emotion. I feel that he is so repetitive, especially when it comes to death, as a reflection of his PTSD. When O'Brien thinks of these traumatic moments his mind starts to circle therefore the repetitive nature of his writing style.
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