The short story "Madagascar Plum" is narrated by a Vietnamese captain who is getting drunk at a bar. While reading the short story the reader may come to question whether the author is telling the truth about the events that led to his post traumatic stress disorder due to his excessive drinking habits and what we have learned from previous books about how soldiers embellish war stories so that the people hearing them can feel the emotions they felt.
I believe that the narrator is telling the truth about the events that led to his PTSD. The reason I believe the narrator is because of how vividly he describes the memories and his actions after the war. Throughout the story the details are so vivid it seems that they are etched into the narrators mind. "Oh brother, her flesh landed piece by piece , piece by piece. Perfectly round brown balls, bright red, sharp white." Even while drunk the details are not hazy they are like he experienced them just a few seconds ago. Also, another reason I feel like the author is telling the truth is because in the story he takes responsibility for his actions. He acknowledges that her murder was his fault. He doesn't try and blame other people for what happened he takes responsibility and tries to cope with it but unfortunately the only way he knows how is to drink.
Another reason I believe that he is telling the truth is because of the captain's behavior after the war. After the war the captain cannot stand to see a Madagascar plum because of the horrific memories it brings back to him. After the war his son squeezes a Madagascar plum between his fingers and he is so disgusted he beats him almost to death. I don't think that reaction would have occurred if he hadn't been so scarred and deeply effected by the murderous decision he made.
Whether you believe the narrator definitely affects how the reader interprets the story. If the reader believes the narrator then it brings out feelings sorrow and compassion for the captain. He was put in a very difficult situation and made a horrific decision based on unlucky circumstances. However, if the reader thinks that the narrator is embellishing the story it makes the narrator sound like he is just looking for sympathy. It seems like the author is lonely and just looking for attention but he is going about it wrong by making up stories to be sensationalized.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
The short story "Madagascar Plum" is narrated by a Vietnamese captain who is getting drunk at a bar. While reading the short story the reader may come to question whether the author is telling the truth about the events that led to his post traumatic stress disorder due to his excessive drinking habits and what we have learned from previous books about how soldiers embellish war stories so that the people hearing them can feel the emotions they felt.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the narrator is telling the truth about the events that led to his PTSD. The reason I believe the narrator is because of how vividly he describes the memories and his actions after the war. Throughout the story the details are so vivid it seems that they are etched into the narrators mind. "Oh brother, her flesh landed piece by piece, piece by piece. Perfectly round brown balls, bright red, sharp white." Even while drunk the details are not hazy they are like he experienced them just a few seconds ago. Also, another reason I feel like the author is telling the truth is because in the story he takes responsibility for his actions. He acknowledges that her murder was his fault. He doesn't try and blame other people for what happened he takes responsibility and tries to cope with it but unfortunately the only way he knows how is to drink.
Another reason I believe that he is telling the truth is because of the captain's behavior after the war. After the war the captain cannot stand to see a Madagascar plum because of the horrific memories it brings back to him. After the war his son squeezes a Madagascar plum between his fingers and he is so disgusted he beats him almost to death. I don't think that reaction would have occurred if he hadn't been so scarred and deeply affected by the murderous decision he made.
Whether you believe the narrator definitely affects how the reader interprets the story. If the reader believes the narrator then it brings out feelings sorrow and compassion for the captain. He was put in a very difficult situation and made a horrific decision based on unlucky circumstances. However, if the reader thinks that the narrator is embellishing the story it makes the narrator sound like he is just looking for sympathy. It seems like the author is lonely and just looking for attention but he is going about it wrong by making up stories to be sensationalized.