A Post-Structuralism Investigation of the Mysterious Fate of Stink Harris Elias Curran-Moore 11th Grade

In Going After Cacciato by Tim O’Brien, one abundantly clear theme is disjunction. Much of the text is fragmented, split up and moving between locations, characters, and time periods. Coupled with what often seems like magical realism, this paints a rather indistinct picture of many events. One in particular being the departure of Stink Harris. When the group arrives in Greece on the boat, Stink Harris’ fate after he leaps off the ship is made unclear by alternative textual interpretations of the situation.

Excited by their prospects upon arrival to Piraeus, the hope-filled group is crushed after noting the multitude of customs officers waiting for them. As turning around and giving up increasingly seems like the only option, Doc Peret makes the comment “‘So close.’ Doc sighed. ‘And yet so close.’”(O’Brien 257). This statement, botching the common saying ‘So close yet so far’, which appears to not able to properly represent the situation that it seems the group is in, is strange. Doc’s comment, instead of representing the fact there is no hope, may be the last ray of light glimmering inside the mind of the group members, making them feel as though they are still close enough to drift away into Greece. Since this statement...