4. Tone/Theme

I have created two early tones for the novel. First, nostalgic, which is really simple, because O’Brien is telling of his time in Vietnam, but bringing us to present day with his own narration. My second tone is restlessness. I feel O’Brien has all these stories in his mind that he is trying to jot on paper. I especially sense this when he mentions his daughter saying he is obsessed with his war stories. I can imagine O’Brien being the type of person who struggles to sleep at night because he constantly is getting up to write this novel. Also, this goes back to a first person narrator. O’Brien writes what he knows. Like he said, he cannot write about a little girl winning a million dollars and buying a horse. The thoughts he carries are of his time in Vietnam. This idea is reminiscent of the theme. O’Brien carries his memories, which he must write about. Cross still carries the burden of Lavender’s death. All of these create a theme. These thoughts and emotions are aspects carried through life. The past cannot be forgotten or changed; it can only be carried and lived through the present into the future.