Tim O Brien A Bystander Analysis

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Tim O’Brien was a bystander in the Vietnam war. A bystander is spectator of the event but does not take part in the event. A bystander can be just as bad as the people taking part in the event. In O’Brien’s mind, him being a bystander is something he is ashamed of. O’Brien “watched a man die on a trail near the village of My Khe. [He] did not kill him. But [he] was present, you see, and [his] presence was guilt enough” (179). O’Brien being a bystander in this situation led to the death of a soldier. Although O’Brien did not kill him directly, he did not help to save him which contributed to his death. If O’Brien had done something, anything really, in order to help the soldier the soldier could have lived and O’Brien would not have a guilty