Randal O'Brian

People learn so much from books, but there is something more sincere and real when you talk face-to-face with someone who has experienced it. I can’t say that even I can comprehend what happened, but I have a better understanding because of the words from Randal O’Brian. It amazing how loving a person can be towards the military and the government after going through this kind of war. It is a true testament to him of what good he made for his life out of something so terrible. I appreciate his willingness to discuss these times in his life, and his complete honesty. The humility that goes with that; I can’t be easy getting up in front of a class and just answer any questions they have about one of the most stressful and dreadful time in his life.

Going After Cacciato

This book reminds me a little of “The Things They Carried”, also a book based on Vietnam. Cacciato is portrayed as a dim-witted individual, but he has a plan and is following through with it. This is something that gives all the other men hope, something lacking in all soldier stationed in Vietnam. As they chase him, they secretly cheer for him, especially Paul Berlin, the soldier who initially reported him AWOL. As much as they criticize him, they see he has courage.
In the military you are taught to follow the mission and orders given by those appointed over you. By leaving his group, Cacciato breaks the very idea of being part of a whole; he has become an individual. This is dangerous, because not only is he going off on his own, but also he is leaving his buddies vulnerable.

Bildunsroman

This is not a bildungsroman. There isn’t any vertical growth by the characters. If anything, Francis maybe spread himself out (horizontally), but he doesn’t gain anything from this. This book is a real tragedy. O’Connor had to be making a point with this. She often wrote about backwards, and fundamental protestants and by the end of the novel brought them closer to the Catholic mind. Yet, in this novel she instead gave examples of what not to become.
Poor Francis was doomed from the start; he must take some responsibility for killing Bishop, but at the same time so do Old Tarwater and Rayber. They were both so concerned with their extremist views that they didn’t bother to teach Francis the values that should be provided by a family. Regardless of how you see Tarwater, he has failed as a prophet and a guardian. In the book that he preaches it states that it is better to have killed yourself than to cause a child to sin, and he has done just that. Tarwater is all talk, as seen in his hypocritical actions. If Francis had the Christian values he needed then regardless of what Rayber said to him, he wouldn’t have killed Bishop.

The Violent Bear It Away

This isn’t like any of the other books I have read before. It is an intriguing book, but all the characters are one-dimensional. The book opens with the death of the self-proclaimed prophet Old Tarwater. It seems that Francis believes in his great uncle’s message, but he fails to bury the body. This is something that his great uncle was very concerned with because he believed that if he weren’t buried then he wouldn’t be able to go to heaven. I think this book is filled with characters that are hard to believe. It is so hard for me to understand this 14-year-old boy who burns down his house and runs away by his self. This scene gives the impression that Francis maybe going off to find himself and the outside world his has been isolated from. There maybe hope for him yet.

Bildungsroman

There is no question that this short story is a bildungsroman. From discovering more about Old Ben to completely surrendering himself to the wilderness, Isaac McCaslin continuously grows throughout this novel. This is even prevalent when he gives up most of his fortune and gives it to part of the ‘family’ that truly deserves it. In this novel, the wilderness creates the environment for Ike to separate himself from his family history and find himself in complete solitude. Through this discovery of the wilderness, Ike also believes that land is not something that can be owned by men. But at the end of the novel, lumber rights to the land have been sold, and Ike takes the train into the forest for one last hunting trip. This illustrates the conclusion to a chapter in his life. This is the last time he will be here, and already everything has changed. It is no longer wilderness.

Wilderness

The discussion we had in class about wilderness really got me thinking about it. I never thought about the concept of civilization creating wilderness. It is the stark contrast that scares people. One question I had come up with for discussion asked ‘if the wilderness (the forest) was destroyed would a person be able to have the same experience?’
When I tie in the concept of wilderness in relation to civilization, I realize that it is a man-made idea. The only reason humans are mystified about it, is that there are so many unknowns and man does not control it. With the destruction of wilderness, man creates this false sense of invincibility. There is no way that man can play ‘Mother Nature’ even in civilized society, because there are always ‘acts of God’ or unforeseen problems.

The Bear

From the very first sentence, the reader is taken into nature, more specifically the forest. This book is so well written that even if the reader hasn’t been hunting before, he is easily able to imagine himself right next to the boy. The reader finds this humble and scared boy, who has been hunting this bear for the past six years. He actually has no intention of slaying it, but it is the adrenaline of the chase and the mystery of the wilderness that draws the boy in. During his first hunting experience, when he was 13 years old, Ike discovers an emotion that most boys his age cannot comprehend- fear. As Sam told him, you can have fear, but don’t be afraid. It is the men who are afraid that other men and bears must worry about.