Inescapable Violence Anonymous 12th Grade

In the novel Going After Cacciato by Tim O’Brien, Paul Berlin’s war experience follows three elaborate storylines in order to explore the effect war has on a soldier. The storyline focusing on the fantastical pursuit of Cacciato reveals many moments in which conventional ideas of fantasy are challenged by external pressures for different reasons. Many conflicting aspects of Berlin’s character are portrayed throughout the different storylines revealing disparities between Berlin’s view of himself in reality and Berlin’s view of himself in his fantasy. Difficulties throughout his imagined journey are present in order to add realism to his fantasy and are also symbolic of the stresses he is experiencing from warfare and for fantasizing fleeing. He also creates a war story through his fantasy that depicts him as heroic, and the obstacles present are necessary to illustrate his bravery.

Paul Berlin’s journey to Paris depicts moments of internal conflict about his imagined desertion that show his struggle to allow fantasy to coexist with expectations and reality. When most aspects of his reality are far from perfect, a flawless fantasy strays much too far from his actual truth which causes him feel guilty about his fantasy and bad...