The Red Convertible, written by Louise Erdrich, is a short story written in the first person perspective of a Chippewa Indian named Lyman. It portrays the story of his brother, Henry, who joins the Marines and fights in the Vietnam War. Before recruiters pick up Henry, Lyman describes him and his brother’s road trip in their brand new red Olds. Lyman explains Henry’s characteristic during their joy-ride as friendly, joking, and fun. Returning from their road trip, Henry leaves for Vietnam. When he returns, Henry is not the same joyful man that he once was before he had left. Louise Erdrich’s short story, The Red Convertible, follows the life of Henry who is as funny joking guy. Although war has changed him, and it was not for the best. Louise Erdrich’s theme for The Red Convertible is that war can devastate peoples’ lives. During the road trip the two brothers pick up “long-haired Susy in Alaska” (974). In Erdrich’s story, Susy character has a great importance. Erdrich includes Susy to show the readers the type of man Henry was. Lyman describes their interaction inside the tent after they …show more content…
The National Institute of Mental Health recognizes PTSD as a “disorder that develops in some people who have seen or lived through a shocking, scary, or dangerous event.” Since Henry’s return from the war, Lyman describes his brother as tense. There are many examples of Henry’s strange behaviors. However one truly stood out to Lyman and his family. He says, “I looked over, and he’d bitten through his lip. Blood was going down his chin” (970). Lyman continues that, “he took a bite of his bread his blood fell onto it until he was eating his own blood mixed in with the food” (970). Henry clearly is troubled by something, and the troubles all began after Henry went off to the Vietnam War. I’m no doctor, but one could simply recognize Henry is suffering from some form of
During the war, Henry was taken P.O.W. and spent time in a Vietnamese prison. When he returned home, Lyman said, "Henry was very different...the change was no good," (463). Henry was constantly paranoid and evidently mentally unstable as a result of his wartime trauma. When the family had exhausted all efforts to help Henry, Lyman thought of the car. Though Henry had not even looked at the car since his return, Lyman said, "I thought the car might bring back the old Henry somehow. So I bided my time and waited for my chance to interest him in the vehicle." (464)
PTSD (soldiers heart) “is a condition that can develop after you have gone a life-threatening event.” The symptoms that you have when experiencing PTSD (soldier’s heart) are Depression, Self-blame, guilt, shame, anger (aggressive behavior), Alcohol or drug abuse. Gary Paulsen wrote a book called Soldier's Heart to show some of the symptoms of PTSD or Soldier's Heart. Gary Paulsen’s book Soldier's Heart is about a 15-year-old boy who decides to join the army the army at 15 and because of the he develops PTSD (soldiers heart) he starts to become Suicidal and develops aggressive behavior and survivor's guilt. Therefore, this shows that Charley has developed soldier's heart or PTSD.
The consequences and effects of war, may be psychological, physical, or emotional. Can effect directly, for example, a solider or indirectly, for example, that soldier’s relatives and friends. “The Things They Carried” and “The Red Convertible” exam these matters. “The Things They Carried examines the psychological, physical, or emotional side of destruction that the Vietnam War bought. While “The Red Convertible” focuses on the psychological strain on soldiers they endure after the war as well as their families. These stories raise the questions is really war really necessary and can a solider back out of duty. Both stories are initiation stories or coming of age stories. These aspects are most effective when analyzing these works. The pieces may go deeper into the issues and questions at hand. The Centering on characterization, the point of view, symbolism or imagery, and significance of the title all help support the theme of these works and develop thoughts and opinions on the stories issues.
At the beginning of the story, you find that Lyman and Henry are like somewhat typical brothers living on the reservation. Although between the two brothers, Lyman
It is said that when a man returns from war he is forever changed. In the short story, “The Red Convertible,” Louise Erdrich demonstrates these transformations through the use of symbolism. Erdrich employs the convertible to characterize the emotional afflictions that war creates for the soldier and his family around him by discussing the the pre-deployment relationship between two brothers Henry and Lyman, Lyman's perception of Henry upon Henry's return, and Henry’s assumed view on life in the end of the story.
To what lengths would you go for a loved one? Would you destroy something in hopes that it would save them? That 's what Lyman Lamartine did in hopes to fix his PTSD afflicted brother. "The Red Convertible" was written by Louise Erdrich in 1974 and published in 2009 along with several other short stories. Lyman, and Henry, are brothers. The story starts by telling us about how the two brothers acquired a red convertible. Henry ends up being drafted into the Vietnam War, and comes back home suffering from PTSD. One day the pair decided to take a drive to the Red River because Henry wanted to see the high water. Ultimately, the story ends with a cliff-hanger, and we are left wondering what happens to the boys. The symbolic nature of the red convertible will play a key role in this literary analysis, along with underling themes of PTSD and war.
PTSD, also known as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, can cause change and bring about pain and stress in many different forms to the families of the victims of PTSD. These changes can be immense and sometimes unbearable. PTSD relates to the characters relationship as a whole after Henry returns from the army and it caused Henry and Lyman’s relationship to crumble. The Red Convertible that was bought in the story is a symbol of their brotherhood. The color red has many different meanings within the story that relates to their relationship.
Not many people can relate to Louise Edrich’s story, “The Red Convertible.” It may be fictional, but there is more to it than a story to entertain the readers. The Red Convertible is about Lyman and his changed older brother, Henry who comes back from his service with Post-traumatic stress disorder. Post-traumatic stress disorder can last for years or be lifelong. In Edrich’s “The Red Convertible,” the characters and plot conveys the theme “what doesn’t kill you, makes you wish you were
Henry suffers from retrograde amnesia due to internal bleeding in the part of the brain that controls memory. This causes him to forget completely everything he ever learned. His entire life is forgotten and he has to basically relearn who he was, only to find he didn’t like who he was and that he didn’t want to be that person. He starts to pay more attention to his daughter and his wife and starts to spend more time with them.
In Native American culture, the red is the color of faith, and represents communication. The short story The Red Convertible by Louise Erdrich is more than an emotional story about the lives of two Chippewa brothers who grew up together on an Indian reservation in North Dakota. Erdrich uses metaphor, symbol, vivid imagery and a simple writing style to allow the reader to understand the text while also providing the opportunity to read a lot into the story.
It is said that when a man returns from war, he is forever changed. In the short story, “The Red Convertible,” Louise Erdrich demonstrates these transformations through the use of symbolism. Erdrich employs the convertible to characterize the emotional afflictions that war creates for the soldier and his family around him by discussing the pre-deployment relationship between two brothers Henry and Lyman, Lyman's perception of Henry upon Henry's return, and Henry’s assumed view on life at the end of the story. Throughout "The Red Convertible" Erdrich embraces the car as a symbol for the powerful relationship between two brothers, Henry and Lyman. The brothers combined their money to acquire a red convertible which they drove everywhere together; the car symbolized that relationship.
In Louise Erdrich’s “The Red Convertible” chronicles both the erosion of childhood innocence and the dissolution of a particular sibling relationship. In order to suggest these themes, the narrative foregrounds imagery of movement and stasis, conveying their meanings in complex ways. As such, it’s no surprise that the title of the story itself not only describes the symbolic importance of the convertible to their brotherhood, but also embodies freedom to transcend one’s societal confinements, which, in this case, imparts the literal power of movement. The car gives both of them a kind of agency that lifts them from their economic and social disadvantages as Native Americans. Hence the story establishes the joyful memories of Lyman and Henry’s brotherhood with an extended description of their movement throughout the land, going as far up to Alaska. Not surprisingly, Lyman thinks that making Henry focus on the car, an agent and symbol of freedom, will ultimate save his brother’s soul and regain his spirit. Unfortunately, this turns out to be a false assumption.
The reader also meets Henry, Lyman’s brother who is older than he is. Unlike Lyman, the reader is given a physical description of Henry. Erdrich writes, “He was built like a brick out house anyway. He had a nose big and sharp as a hatchet” (128). One may conclude that a physical description was given for Henry and not Lyman because he was ...
A soldier’s journey, a trip back home from World War II and a collision with reality is described in the opening of Henry Green’s novel, “Back”. The opening deals with the soldier’s journey, his experience at the warfront, the death of his love, and finally a child who is his own son, the last thing he has of his love. Charley, the soldier is seen reminiscing the moments he had with Rose and his experiences at the battlefield while he walks through the graveyard towards the body of his love. The author conveys a lot more than just what the words say in the first few paragraphs, leaving the reader eager to turn the page, as well as giving the reader the freedom to interpret what certain words and sentences mean. As the book opens, the reader learns about Charley’s disability.
In both stories the main characters brothers have been remitted into society after returning from their individual battles. In Louise Erdrich’s “The Red Convertible,” Lyman’s brother Henry enlisted in the army and is called to arms in Vietnam. Before he left, the two brothers went on a road trip in a red convertible that they purchased together. The time that they spent in the car, traveling across the globe, was meant to be valuable time to strengthen their brotherly bond. When the war was over, at least in the eyes of the government, they sent Henry back home with the war still raging in his head (Erdrich 234). Henry had been captured by the enemy and the memories of the war and the gruesome things that he had encountered were still very fresh in his mind. The ghastly details of the war desensitized Henry and he was no longer the same man as when he left. Lyman noticed that people began to stay away from him. He no longer cracked jokes as he did before, in fact, “Henry was jumpy and mean” (Erdrich 234). Henry is constantly tortured by the memories of the war and can no longer participate as a functional member of society. In James Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues,” the narrator’s brother Sonny is a recovering drug addict who has just been released from prison. While in prison, Sonny realized the error of his sinister ...