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Happiness In On The Rainy River By Tim O Brien

526 Words3 Pages

An individual’s life is truly successful and healthy when they are determined to follow their desires which pay back with happiness and satisfaction. However, some individuals describe life as a curse due to being restrained from pursuing their interests, thus being unhappy with life; in other words, compromising their happiness. The short story “On the Rainy River" written by Tim O’Brien suggests that when individuals compromise their happiness, they often face emotional and moral dilemmas resulting in low self-esteem. In other words, individuals do not feel as much confidence in their life when they are facing inner conflicts about their happiness. The main character in this short story, the author himself, explains how he is going through a crisis because of his unaligned …show more content…

Individuals often compromise their happiness to conform better within society by meeting their expectations. The main character, O’Brien, showed hesitance about experiencing societal pressure as a result of his fearful behavior about joining the army to fight in the war. This was demonstrated when O'Brien stated, "I couldn't tolerate it. I couldn't endure the mockery, or the disgrace, or the patriotic ridicule". This quote supports my argument as it illustrates the societal pressure O'Brien faces because he ran away from his "duty" of fighting alongside his nation since a man is not supposed to show cowardice and only present bravery, according to society. O'Brien visioned the consequences he would face for not showing patriotism towards his country by escaping. Society puts forth many conditions and expectations that men must meet to be called "true men", or else society will deride the man for the rest of his life for not showing qualities of being a true man. Individuals often compromise their happiness to conform better within society by meeting their expectations. The main character, O’Brien, showed

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Before the war O’Brien worked hard on his studies and didn’t believe in the war. Once he got drafted into the war he had a moral split. He seriously contemplated running away from his problems and fleeing to Canada. Minnesota and Canada separated one life from another. He drove up to a lodge where he met an older man who changed his life forever.

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As O’Brien considers the option of avoiding the draft by going to Canada, he realises that he is “afraid of walking away from [his] own life, [his] friends and [his] family, [his] whole history, everything that mattered to [him]. [He] feared losing the respect of [his] parents. [He] feared the law. [He] feared ridicule and censure” ( ). O’Brien wrestles with these fears alone.

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Summary Of On The Rainy River By Tim O Brien

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The river was the center of the story, in an archetypal perspective the river is a representation of the transitional phase. As Tim began to travel to Canada he followed a river: “I headed straight west along the Rainy River, which separates Minnesota from Canada, and which for me separated one life from another.” (O’Brian). Tim knew he needed to cross the river to start his new life, as he walked along it the river resembled the transition he was either going to take or walk away from. O’Brian spent six days along the river thinking about what he would do next.

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In fact, O’Brien debunks the assumption that men go to fight in wars to become heroes, for he did not go to the war to be recognized as a hero. Instead, Tim O’Brien, like so many others, initially wanted to avoid the draft, but succumbed to the pressures of society, that still continues on to this day. The men, especially the draftees, never quite know what they’re getting into, and wars bring out every emotion in a person through different experiences. In his book, O’Brien states, “Getting shot should be an experience from which you can draw some small pride…” (182). This quote emphasizes the moments of the war in which men muster up what little they would have ever opened up to when they speak of their experiences.

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In addition, Tim O’Brien conveys how society’s view on cowardice leads to the feeling of guilt in soldiers in the Vietnam War. In “On The Rainy River”, O’Brien claims that he opposes the Vietnam War, and he sees no reason for the war. However, against his own will, he is drafted and is required to go to war. O’Brien reacts negatively to this saying, “All I wanted was to live the life I was born to... now I was off on the margins of exile, leaving my country forever, and it seemed so impossible and terrible and sad,” (50 and 51).

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Heroes In On The Rainy River By Tim O Brien

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O’Brien stops at a seemed to be an abandoned campground, it's not abandoned. To the sound of his vehicle a man opens the door from the main building. A man with a face O’Brien will never forget. This man helps O’Brien overcome his fear of death and also leaving his family by never bringing up the subject of the matter, but also by giving him a chance to leave, leave the United States to flee the war.

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This can lead to a lack of authenticity and a sense of disconnection from our true selves, which can be harmful to our mental health and overall well-being, along with a sense of disempowerment and a lack of control over our lives. This can lead to feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, which can contribute to feelings of loneliness and isolation, which can contribute to mental health problems such as depression. In conclusion, the short story "On the Rainy River" is a great example of the reality of making difficult decisions and the complex nature of motivation that pushes oneself to make them. Through Tim's moral dilemma, we see how motivation can be influenced by fear, shame, and a desire for self-respect. Tim's decision is not driven by a single factor but is instead influenced by a range of emotions and motivations.

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(O’Brien 128.) With the tone being used in this quote, readers already know that the actions you commit in war have the ability to stick with you for the rest of your life, but they also learn that although a significant amount of time has passed, that doesn’t necessarily mean that becoming comfortable with the situation will become easier, because O’Brien and his other platoon members are the perfect examples of this. Dealing with situations like these can even become harder as you progress throughout life because every time you think of a resolution, more and more questions arise about what you should and shouldn’t have done. Readers recognize that the things they do, or don’t do in life can make them feel the same way as the war

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O’Brien tells the readers about him reflecting back twenty years ago, he wonders if running away from the war were just events that happened in another dimension, he pictures himself writing a letter to his parents: “I’m finishing up a letter to my Parents that tells what I'm about to do and why I'm doing it and how sorry I am that I’d never found the courage to talk to them about it”(O’Brien 80). Even twenty years after his running from the war, O’Brien still feels sorry for not finding the courage to tell his parents about his decision of escaping to Canada to start a new life. O’Brien presented his outlook that even if someone was not directly involved in the war, this event had impacted them indirectly, for instance, how a person’s reaction to the war can create regret for important friends and

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Journey In On The Rainy River By Tim O Brien

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Textual Analysis In the short story “On the Rainy River” O’Brien uses an archetypal journey to show that he is not an archetypal hero. Jung decided there was a pattern to journeys in heroic stories so he made 11 stages that all heroic journeys follow. I have chosen 1 that O’Brien does follow and 2 that he does not to follow to emphasize his cowardness and his inability to stand up for what he believes in. Increased awareness of fear and change, over coming fear and mastery.

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Even after all these years, O’Brien is still unable to get the images of Vietnam out of him head, specifically of the man he killed. In the novel, he repeats the description of the man numerous times, almost to the point of excess, saying,“he was a slim, dead, almost dainty young man of about twenty. He lay with one leg bent beneath him, his jaw in his throat, his face neither expressive nor inexpressive. One eye was shut. The other was a star-shaped hole” (124).

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At first Mr. O’ Brien wants to flee to Canada even though he knows that he won’t be able to see his family again or that he won’t be able to come back to the states. However, when he is only twenty yards away from the border, he can’t risk the embarrassment from his hometown and the whole universe, so he goes to the war. During the war, Mr. O’ Brien figures out that the only reason that any of his fellow soldiers are at the war was so their prestige wouldn’t go down. He goes so far as to say, “Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to… They died so as not to die of embarrassment.

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However, in turn this causes O’Brien to view himself as a coward in his own eyes as he conforms to society and goes to war. We can identify from O’Brien’s experience that you cannot please everyone, due to the tendency it has on leading people to their own resentment. This alludes to the idea that every human being will have their own judgments and opinions regardless of what you say or think. So basing motives and actions on the expectations of society, may result in a disservice to oneself. Throughout the length of the story, O’Brien relentlessly takes into consideration the external influences rather than his own promises.

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