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Mary Anne Bell Themes

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In this novel, there has been many different themes introduced. A few of these themes that can be found in this book include: war can bring out an unexpected side of someone, shame can sometimes be a motivation, and physical and emotional burdens come along with being at war.

The first theme is: war can bring out an unexpected side of someone. If you have ever read this novel you can probably think of the most common example of this theme from the book, which is sweet little Mary Anne Bell. It is very clear to see this as a theme with her because when she first came into the story she was described as, “Too wide in the shoulders, maybe, but she had terrific legs, a bubbly personality, a happy smile.” (Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong pg. 90-91) Although she appeared this way, the longer she stayed in Vietnam, the more she adapted to the war, and eventually changed almost completely. By the end out the chapter she was no longer the sweet Mary Anne they had first introduced, but Rat said, “In part it was her eyes: utterly flat and indifferent. There was no emotion in her stare, no sense of the person behind it.” (Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong pg. 105) This is a prime example of how war can just push a person so far over the edge to the point where they are no longer themselves. …show more content…

This theme came up a lot, being that it was a war story, but one really stand out example was Norman Bowker. Norman was always worried that if he didnt earn awards and medals no one would care about his accomplishments. Especially in chapter 15, Norman goes on and on about an award that he didn’t win, and doesn’t even seem to care about the seven other awards and medals he did get. Even though this makes him seems ungrateful, really it is a good thing, because his fear of shame motivates him to try his best and be brave while in

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