Time is a Flat Circle

This chapter specifically reminded me of a show on HBO called True Detective. In this show, Matthew Mcconaughey plays a troubled character who's views on life coincide with O'Brien's. More importantly, Mcconaughey says, "time is a flat circle" making a reference to how much in life is repeated, and it can be troublesome to escape the past. I think this quote directly describes Tim O'Brien's post-war experience and ultimately, his PTSD. Tim O'Brien's use of repetition conveys this general theme of time as a "flat circle."

Furthermore, the effects of the war can be seen in O'Brien's constant frustration with everyday civilians not understanding what experiencing a war is actually like. This consistent distance between the reader and author can be noted throughout the book. For example, O'Brien tells the story of Rat Kiley not receiving a response from the letter he sent to his deceased friend, Curt Lemon's, sister. His reaction of calling her a "dumb cooze" completely encompasses the failure that everyday citizens face to understand what these veterans went through during the war. Even after a soldier returns home, the effects of the war can still return as noted above with "time being a flat circle." As soldier's get used to life during wartime and living in a foreign land succumbing only to the rules of the military, the soldier's return to normalcy in society is oftentimes extremely difficult. As the flat circle of time begins to recall events of war in the form of flashbacks, soldiers oftentimes experience anxiety and depression.