Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in If I Die in a Combat Zone, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Evils of the Vietnam War
Courage
Duty vs. Conscience
The Enemy
Racism at War
Summary
Analysis
Alpha Company meets an old Vietnamese farmer who gives them water from his well. He is over 70 and blind, but good-natured, and the soldiers decide to spend the day in his village, waiting for rations to be delivered by helicopter. The spend the day with the old man and the village children, eating a drinking beer. The old man helps the soldiers shower, drawing buckets of water out of his well and sloshing it over the soldiers’ backs and shoulders. Without reason, a “blustery and stupid [American] soldier” grabs a carton of milk and throws it at the old man’s head, striking him in the face, nearly knocking him off his feet. It cuts his lips and milk splatters across his face and body like “perfect gore.” The old man regains his balance and composure, then smiles and continues helping the American soldiers shower.
This chapter depicts an American soldier committing a senseless violent act against a gracious Vietnamese civilian. This portrayal further suggests that America is not morally superior in any way, since its soldiers inflict needless suffering and humiliation on Vietnamese citizens. While other American soldiers are not necessarily so heartless or crude, O’Brien’s inclusion of the episode suggests that such random cruelty is not unusual. The soldier’s violence is entirely unprovoked, indicating that it perhaps stems from racial animosity toward Vietnamese people.
Themes
