Louise Erdrich's The Red Convertible: America After The War In Vietnam
Frank Escobar
Professor Finnegan
English 111-883
25 November 2014
Erdrich’s “The Red Convertible”: America After the War in Vietnam “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich is a story about two young brothers named Henry Junior and Lyman Lamartine that have a strong relationship until Henry junior is drafted and sent away to the war in Vietnam. “The Red Convertible” shows that returning veterans face troubles, such as problems with family relationships; war changes Henry’s his personality and causes him to have PTSD.
The war has messed up Henry Junior’s and Lyman Lamartine’s family relationship. Lyman talks about how Henry is when he gets back from the war in Vietnam. Lyman says, “Henry was very different, and I’ll say this: the change was no good…. But he was quiet, so quiet, and never comfortable sitting still anywhere but always up and moving around” (186). The war in Vietnam has ruined their relationship. Before the war, Lyman remembers …show more content…
Henry shows these symptoms when he has come back from the war in Vietnam: “he was quiet, so quiet, and never comfortable sitting still” (186). Lyman also states how “ Henry was jumpy and mean” (186). When Henry and Lyman are watching TV in the room, then Lyman “heard his teeth click at something. [Lyman] looked over, and he’d bitten through his lip. Blood was going down his chin” (186-187). This shows that something deeply wrong is happening to Henry. As the story show us all these examples about Henry’s behavior, we can see that the war in Vietnam has been responsible for Henry having PTSD. It was not only the war, but also the fact that “the enemy caught him” (185). When the enemy captured Henry Junior, a reader can assume that something terrible happened to him. That experience has been painful for him. In a way it ruined everything he once had. His family relationship, the personality his young brother admired, and finally the war in Vietnam caused him to have
Professor Finnegan
English 111-883
25 November 2014
Erdrich’s “The Red Convertible”: America After the War in Vietnam “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich is a story about two young brothers named Henry Junior and Lyman Lamartine that have a strong relationship until Henry junior is drafted and sent away to the war in Vietnam. “The Red Convertible” shows that returning veterans face troubles, such as problems with family relationships; war changes Henry’s his personality and causes him to have PTSD.
The war has messed up Henry Junior’s and Lyman Lamartine’s family relationship. Lyman talks about how Henry is when he gets back from the war in Vietnam. Lyman says, “Henry was very different, and I’ll say this: the change was no good…. But he was quiet, so quiet, and never comfortable sitting still anywhere but always up and moving around” (186). The war in Vietnam has ruined their relationship. Before the war, Lyman remembers …show more content…
Henry shows these symptoms when he has come back from the war in Vietnam: “he was quiet, so quiet, and never comfortable sitting still” (186). Lyman also states how “ Henry was jumpy and mean” (186). When Henry and Lyman are watching TV in the room, then Lyman “heard his teeth click at something. [Lyman] looked over, and he’d bitten through his lip. Blood was going down his chin” (186-187). This shows that something deeply wrong is happening to Henry. As the story show us all these examples about Henry’s behavior, we can see that the war in Vietnam has been responsible for Henry having PTSD. It was not only the war, but also the fact that “the enemy caught him” (185). When the enemy captured Henry Junior, a reader can assume that something terrible happened to him. That experience has been painful for him. In a way it ruined everything he once had. His family relationship, the personality his young brother admired, and finally the war in Vietnam caused him to have