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Theme Of The Courage Of Soldiers By Pauline Nguyen

571 Words3 Pages

The themes of oppression and freedom are inherently contradictory. Yet, they compel individuals to drive beyond their limitations and boundaries, leading to a deeper understanding of themselves and others. In her book 'The Courage of Soldiers', author Pauline Nguyen explores this notion. She enlightens how living in an oppressive environment can authorise the cultivation of intrepidity in individuals to rebel. Nguyen's autobiography likewise emphasises how crossing mental, personal, and emotional boundaries can nourish a more profound understanding of oneself and one's family. This is insinuated in "My father fled Vietnam to escape the oppression of the communist regime. It is ironic that we, in turn, have to escape the tyranny of his rule and …show more content…

The situational irony concocts a sense of astonishment and unexpectedness. It provides a deeper understanding of the complexities while emulating the universal nature of oppression and tyranny and how they can manifest differently and impact others. This perspicacity of its complexities cultivates one with a fresh perspective that stretches beyond the standard narrative and explores the realities behind one's psychology to oppress. The process of transgressing such mental boundary encourages empathy towards the oppressors and individuals who experienced oppression, as though her being able to internalise and acquire solidarity with her father's experience of oppression authorises her with a nuanced understanding of the influence of these oppressive systems, yielding a more in-depth assimilation of the human condition that transcends simple dichotomies of oppression and freedom. This alteration in one's thinking through overstepping mental extremities elicits how crossing one's limitations leads to a deeper understanding of self and

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