The story’s central event is the death of Ted Lavender, which the story returns to again and again. Why do you think the story revisits this event so often? Do you think this repetition honors Lavender or trivializes his death? Explain your answer.

According to the narrator, “The things they carried were largely determined by necessity” (para. $2$), were “partly a function of rank, partly of field specialty” (para. $6$), “varied by mission” (para. $14$), and “were determined to some extent by superstition” (para. $28$). Which is the strongest factor in determining what they carried? Do you find any irony in the things they carried?

The second stanza offers examples of “organized Decays.” Examine them closely, and then analyze how they function both literally and figuratively.

What evidence do you find that Jimmy Cross is a Christ figure? How does the symbolism of his name and initials influence your reading of the story? Is the virgin Martha akin to the Virgin Mary? Explain why or why not.

Paragraph $3$ says, “They were called legs or grunts.” Explain why this use of synecdoche (using a part to refer to the whole) is especially appropriate not only for this story but for life in the military in general.

The story begins with a paragraph about Jimmy Cross and his relationship with Martha. What does Martha represent to Cross? Why might it be significant that Cross obsesses about whether or not she is a virgin? How do Cross’s feelings for Martha change toward the end of the story, and how does this change point the way to one of the themes of the story?

Jimmy Cross carries “the responsibility for the lives of his men” (para. $7$) and ultimately cannot bear that burden. What does he literally and figuratively shed in order to bear that weight following Lavender’s death? What point is O’Brien making?

There is an important shift in line $19$, where the “you” and “your” of line $16$ become “My comrade” and “his.” What is the significance of this shift in terms of the relationship of the speaker to his dying son? How does the final wrapping of his comrade in a blanket complicate this shift?

This speech includes many examples of inverted syntax, such as line $37$, which reads, “This story shall the good man teach his son” instead of “The good man shall teach his son this story.” Take three other examples — for instance, lines $7, 36$, and $40$ — and rewrite each line in normal order, beginning with the subject, followed by the verb and then the object. How does the inverted syntax of each sentence affect its tone? How does it change the rhythm and meter of the lines? Why would inverted syntax be appropriate for this passage?

How does the poem reveal the speaker’s attitude toward his war experience?

Throughout the essay, Rebecca refers to Antigone’s actions and decisions as “correct.” Explain whether you do or do not find this description appropriate within the terms of the play.

In paragraph $7$, Ozick writes of Magda, “Sometimes she laughed — it seemed a laugh, but how could it be? Magda had never seen anyone laugh.” What is Ozick suggesting about joy?

Line $18$ asks, “What is monument to their legacy?” Do you think to means “compared with” or “in honor of”? Which reading fits your interpretation of the poem? Why?

In a recent year, one United States dollar was equal to about 82 Japanese yen. how many Japanese yen are equal to $100?$1,000? $10,000?