2. By writing about what happened in war O'Brian is reflecting truly processing what had happened. In the moment a soldier could not allow themselves to think about what had happened. Instead it was bottled up and causing damage to the person. O'Brian utilized the art of writing to slowly let go and process, witch helped his heal the damage that was done. 
3. This is relevant to current veterans because although they fought two different conflicts they hold many similar elements such as the common loss of people close to them. O'Brian writing just how much writing helped him heal he encourages other soldiers to do the same, or find some other sort of healing tool. 
4. This connects to our essential question why we tell stories because through them we allow ourselves to not only heal but grow from our prior experiences. Stories have the power to bring those who have past on to come back through our words even for just a moment. 
5. Many stories are missing from the novel, the only one addressed is that of a white middle class american soldier. Some of those left out were the various Asian Americans, countries surrounding or near Vietnam, and people such as french land owners who were just caught in the middle of this conflict. 
6. Something that really resonated with me about the article was how his fellow veterans view his writing.  He describes being nearly certain that those around him do not agree with the truth behind the soldier, that O'Brian writes anything less that flawless or virtues. Thus the ugly truth of his writing one that gives so many an insightful perspective, goes un-tolled in his group meetings with his comrades.

2. O’Brien talks a lot about storytelling and all of its impacts. One of those impacts is healing from the past. O’Brien mentions in his book that he “kept the dead alive with stories” (O'Brien 226). Keeping the dead alive with stories not only keeps the spirit of those who passed alive, but it also provides healing because you can feel like the person who passed was never gone and that they are with you 

3.  This narrative shows how current veterans may feel after growing such a strong bond with their friends in the military. Returning back home and being with family all the time is a huge transition from being with your buddies in the war. After being away from home for so long, you become distant with people unintentionally. It is very common for veterans to feel like a stranger in their own home once they return. 

4. This article relates to our essential question “what are the effects of war?” Through O'Brien's description of his relationship with his peers in the war, it is clear that people change in the war and they create relationships with new people. Many changes in behavior and personality can occur when you are surrounded by new people. 

5. The novel is missing the stories of the families who have been affected by the war. Not only were families ripped apart by the draft of soldiers, but they were also impacted when veterans returned back to their families with changed personalities. There are many different ways that families were impacted by the war, and not enough are mentioned in the novel.

6. This article gave me a deeper understanding of the relationships between soldiers that are formed throughout the war. I now recognize the bond between the veterans and how closely connected they are. 

2. O’Brien says stories can save us. He mentions he thinks of the people that passed often. He dreams of them and a story can let them live on. It could also be a way of coping to let these stories out and write.

3.Current veterans tell stories. Telling the stories lets others feel other people’s existence as they did. It's from their point of view but that person can live on through stories. 

4. The article could be connected to the essential question “What are the effects of war?” because O’Brien shares these deep connections he’s made with his fellow men made during the Vietnam war. The relationship built on shared experience. It’s a certain brotherhood only given from a hellish experience like war. 

5.Other stories missing from the novel are the stories of soilder’s families. Barely any is mentioned of a soldier’s family. The closest mention is of Lieutenant Cross writing to Kiowa’s parents about his death. The family they leave behind gets no spotlight and that may be because O'Brien has no clue how their families were like.

6.What resonates with me is the bond between O’Brien and his war buddies. The strong everlasting connection created from a shared experience is very human. It’s very sweet that they can laugh over something as horrific as a war. 

This article relates to the last chapter in the novel because they both focus on his values and what he should have done. During the war and his childhood, he wasn't vocal about what bothered him and didn't stand up for what he believed in because he was too worried about his reputation and pride. A reoccurring thought is how he should have been more brave even though he would have gotten backlash. In a way, that's what his writing did for him, recount memories of his past and state what he would have liked to do differently, which seen in the essay, he got heat for from his fellow war buddies.

O'Brien addresses the use of storytelling as catharsis and healing by telling the stories to keep the memory of the person alive and to connect the people of the past to the present  so they won't be forgotten. He also gets relief and a sense of healing for himself by finally saying all the thoughts he wanted to say and pointing out everything he disagreed with in his writing. By publishing this book, it was the final weight to be lifted off of him so he could say his unapologetic thoughts even if it was only on paper and not to his buddies who disagreed with his disapproval of war. He couldn't talk to any random person because they wouldn't understand and he couldn't talk to his war buddies without offending them and the war they all fought in, so he used pen and paper as his outlet of everything he kept inside.

This narrative is relevant to current veterans now in that they could too also be having these thoughts of disapproval for what they are fighting for and who they are killing and can't say anything because they have to have the war mentality and the mentality that they are doing the right thing to protect their country no matter what happens in the process. Every soldier experiences death in war and might not know how to handle it like Norman Bowker or they can find an outlet like O'Brien to find that peace of mind to help them sleep at night.

This article connects to the essential question of what the impacts of war are because like O'Brien said, no one fully understands them like the group of soldiers he went to war with, he claims he feels an utter sense of belonging. This in turn means that he still feels out of place in the world decades later because what he went through and the death's that have impacted his way of going through life.

The other stories that are missing are women, people of color, families back home, the protesters of the war. I think it would be very interesting to see how they were affected by loved ones lost or by them themselves fighting in the war.

Something that resonated with me was how it is the "norm" for soldiers to view themselves or their side of the war as the "correct" side. Like how what they are doing is better than other people because they couldn't possibly be the problem or be out of place.

2. O'Brien addresses the use of storytelling as catharsis and healing by communicating the way he relates his past and post-war experiences to his fellow soldier's past/post-war experiences. 

3. The narrative is relevant to the narrative of current veterans because they both focus on storytelling. Whether it was stories from the past or present they are told in a way that adds an emotional connection to the reader. The emotional connection allows the reader to dive deeper and put themselves in the shoes of those involved.  

4. This article connects to the essential questions Why do we tell stories? along with What are the impacts of war? I say this because the main purpose of O'Brien's writtings is to tell stories. When it comes to these stories being told we are also able to tie in what effects these events had on both the individuals involved and the reader. 

5. I feel like a big perspective that is missing is the stories of the soldier's families. 

6. What resonated with me was that last sentence in "The Lives of the Dead", " I realize it is as Tim trying to save Timmy's life with a story"( O'Brien 233). This last line ended the story so strongly and it shows that in the end, O'Brien was just telling stories about his stories.

2.  O’Brien addresses the use of storytelling as catharsis and healing by being able to tell his truth even if many veterans do not agree with him. Tim O’Brien has the freedom to use fiction in his stories to make the reader feel what he wants them to feel. O’Brien has the freedom to let his emotions spill on the pages and express his thoughts on the war.

3.  This narrative is relevant to the narrative of current veterans because they relate to how patriotism can get in the way of moral values. This article is about how veterans can ignore the other side of the story and become narrow minded about what the war did to others. Tim O’Brien named some soldiers as self-congratulatory, mostly uncritical, and selfish. Even though more than a century has passed, the veterans of the past are similar to the veterans of the present because of the common nature of war.

4.  This article connects to the essential question of “What voices are pervasive in this text? What is missing and how is it impacting the plot? The characters? The conflict?”. The potent factors of patriotism and embarrassment are pervasive to a soldier/veteran when deciding to join their country’s war and when looking back on the morality of the war. Tim O’Brien said that only a few of his fellow veterans have expressed distress over an estimated 3 million dead Vietnamese soldiers. This proves that from Tim O’Brien’s experiences and perspective on the Vietnam War, U.S. soldiers have put their country’s values first and bias has blocked the idea of a fundamentally right or wrong decision/opinion.

5.  The stories of the African-American soldiers who fought for the United States in the Vietnam War were not included in this novel. Accounting for about 11 percent of the total troops in the war, African Americans played a big role in the war and were often forced into the front lines of combat. African-American’s were racially discriminated against and were affected differently by the Vietnam War. An African-American perspective on the Vietnam war is vital to understanding all of the war’s complexities and the unique experiences that African-Americans had in a racially segregated time period. My opinion also agrees with the basic premise of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s argument against the popular American perspective of the Vietnam War.

6. The part that resonated with me the most was when O’Brien was talking about his conversations with his fellow veterans. He talked about how there was a scarcity of conversations about the Vietnamese and the morality of the war. The tension of not talking about these things, O’Brien’s books on the war, and their tough-to-break bonds resonated with me.

2. O´Brien though writing and telling these stories he gets the time to look back and process everything. It allows the person to express and release all of what they feel and get out everything that may be causing trauma. O´Brien writes about his truma for this healing and encourages us to do so.

3. This narrative is still relevant with current veterans because even though there are many differences they still both carry trauma.

O´brien ecouges writing for all forms of trauma

4. This article touches on the essential question of why we tell stories. O'Brien tells us that stories are important in relishing trauma and preventing the bottleing up of emotions.

5.The whole book is told though men on the american sides point of view. Not only do we miss the vietnameses stories but we also miss womens. Both groups of people present themselves but they are still told through a man's point of view. 

6. I really disliked how the other veterans tricked and treated the vientamese calling them slurs. especially after doing the play yellow face it definitely struck a nerve

This article connections to the essential questions of "What is the difference between truth and fiction?" and "Why do we tell stories?" Many of O’Brien’s American peers display the harmful effects of only consuming one narrative, and prioritizing personal story-truth over contradictory facts. Despite sharing similar trauma with the Vietnamese people, the veterans rarely acknowledge the damage they incurred, as they are too consumed by highly emotional reconstructions of their experiences.While there is nothing inherently wrong with either story-truth or happening-truth, the blatant emphasis of one and devaluing of the other breeds division and miscommunication.

The novel has also largely excluded stories from women and American citizens that did serve.

 It struck me how seemingly unpopular O'Brien's opinions on the war were among his peers. and the soldiers' lack of empathy towards Vietnamese people. despite experiencing very similar trauma.