From the very beginning of
the novel, the narrator establishes duality as the most important aspect of
himself. While duality is not an uncommon trait among people, the narrator is
extremely gifted. Within the first paragraph, the narrator describes his
duality as “…perhaps the sole talent I possess.”, but also goes on to say “After
all, a talent is something you use, the talent that possesses you – that is a
hazard I must confess” (Nguyen 1). Even when it comes to his own duality, the
narrator can see both sides of how it defines him. Be even with this understanding, the narrator
is always subject to the faults of his duality. Because of his mindset, he is
never truly able to pick a side. In the first chapter, he helps spy for the
North Vietnamese, but also helps to organize evacuation for himself and some of
his other soldiers such the General and Bon. While doing this might have also
been in part to help preserve his cover, it was not required to try and get
passage for Bon’s family too, which helps show his conflicting loyalties.
Later, the narrator is
once again torn between his cause and the sympathy he feels for those he served
with. It’s his choice to disobey Man to save Bon that shows his sympathy and
care for those he spied against. While he realizes that this disobedience is a
betrayal, he feels too strongly to let his friend go, “But I had gotten Bon
into this situation, and it was up to me to get him out if I could” (Nguyen
280). It is because of his sympathy for
Bon that he chooses to go with him, even while his putting his own life at
risk.
Finally, the duality of
the novel reaches its apex during the narrator’s time in the reeducation camp,
and when the narrator begins to refer to himself in the plural. After writing
out his confession, the narrator is forced to confront his two minds and his
conflicting loyalties, “… I was not being punished or reeducated for the things
I had done, but for the thing I had not done” (Nguyen 356-357). While the
narrator had begun to feel sympathy for himself when writing his confession, he
still could see how his failure to help the agent should have consequences. It’s
this final confrontation with his own guilt and the divide within himself that
I believe the narrator finally embraces his split minds and begins to see
himself as two people, hence the “we”.
I found this post very intriguing, and I actually enjoyed reading your interpretation of the events that occurred in the reeducation camp. While reading, I found that section to be fairly confusing, but now that you have managed to tie it into the overarching theme of the novel, I feel as though Nguyen is attempting to demonstrate the duality of the Vietnam War and the ability to use both sides to reach a sound conclusion. Perhaps my favorite quote of the novel can be applied in this setting, “tragedy was not the conflict between right and wrong but right and right” (Nguyen 102). This provides a summary of virtually the entire novel, and the Vietnam War in general. The premise behind the cause of the war was as a result of two legitimate principles dueling over which one was the most legitimate. Does that not seem almost hypocritical in a sense? This can also be tied into the overall conclusion of the novel. His ability to confront his own sense of guilt and his failure to act demonstrate the true complexity of war and the personable characteristics of each relationship he has with others. The conclusion leaves the reader confused because war is complicated, and makes even the most unbiased reader question who is right and who is wrong.
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