Going after what is already gone...

I have read Tim O’Brien before and I like what he does with his novels. I have read the things they carried and I can see striking similarities within both novels. On the back of my book there is a quote that says "To call going after Cacciato a novel about war is like calling Moby Dick a novel about whales." I completely agree with this. This novel is no more about a search for an AWOL soldier than it is about the war itself. This novel was written to give an insight to how a 17 year old boy would find himself in a terrible war. In this novel we see how this boy who normally was considered nothing but a quiet, brave, and trustworthy solider, could just decide to leave it all behind. Tim O’Brien knows what it was like to be drafted at a young age and where he did a lot of his finding himself and growing up into an adult while he was trying to come to terms with being drafted, he still is no stranger to how war can affect a young man. The war brought out the best in Cacciato, he was a good solider, but it also made him question everything, question everything so much that his only answer was to go away to some place safe; give it all up, and that is what he does. He seems perfectly nonchalant about it too, because he knows that was his only choice. Stay and die for a cause he did not understand, or live the rest of his life with only his reputation in the Army to be harmed. It was an easy decision. I also think another important aspect of this novel can be seen in how Paul Berlin handles the search. He seems to be the only one really affected and connected with the reasoning behind Cacciato's departure, and that connection seems to help him come to terms with his own role in this war.