In the Field

     "When a man died, there had to be blame. Jimmy Cross understood this. You could blame the war. You could blame the idiots who made the war. You could blame Kiowa for going to it. You could blame the rain. You could blame the river. You could blame the field, the mud, the climate. You could blame the enemy. You could blame the mortar rounds. You could blame people who were too lazy to read a newspaper, who were bored by the daily body counts, who switched channels at the mention of politics. You could blame whole nations. You could blame God. You could blame the munitions makers or Karl Marx or a trick of fate or an old man in Omaha who forgot to vote."
     Like we talked about in class, it seemed like everyone felt the blame for Kiowa's death. In the beginning of the chapter all of the eighteen soldiers are looking for Kiowa's body together. I felt like these soldiers just wanted " to get it finished". They felt it was wrong to leave his body in the mud so they searched and searched until they found him. I feel like almost everyone felt guilty for Kiowa's death. What we can learn and remember is that something happens due to a series of events. It can't just be one solid situation that beomes the reason. There are usually many reasons or situations that lead to another situation.

Interpretive Questions
1) Did Tim O'Brien feel guilty for Norman Bowker's death? (Notes)
2) Why do bad things happen to good people?
3) Why didn't Jimmy Cross move the men away from the mud?


Harmony :)