O’Brien’s novel still has impact
February 16, 2011
Both Dr. Carolyn Cole, professor of literature and Dr. William Hagen, professor of English, lived during the time period in which Tim O’Brien wrote of his experiences, and they both said both that time period and O’Brien have had a big impact on them.
Hagen said he feels a connection to O’Brien simply because he had similar thoughts that O’Brien had about the situation in Vietnam.
“I guess I connect personally in a sense because we are of the same generation,” Hagen said. “He went to Vietnam, I didn’t go to Vietnam; I was a student at the time. But I remember having some of the same feelings that he had if my time came. Would I stay and be drafted or would I try to become a conscientious objector? Probably not, or would I go to Canada and so forth.”
Cole said this visit from O’Brien would not only be beneficial for academic purposes, but also for spiritual purposes.
“As a person who lived through the Vietnam War period and witnessed the cultural upheaval in its wake, I am excited to have O’Brien appear personally on campus,” she said.
“Though not a professional Christian writer or speaker, I believe O’Brien’s personal witness to the Vietnam experience will be significant to our Christian community.”
This program will also be significant because America is currently in a similar situation as it was in Vietnam, Cole said.
“Our country is currently fighting two wars which many Americans do not support, though we support our soldiers who are risking their lives,” she said.
“The experiences that O’Brien presents in his novel and the questions it raises are still relevant today. I will encourage my students in every possible way to hear him speak.”
O’Brien’s work also had a huge impact on himself and influenced his decision to become a writer, Hagen said.
“I don’t think he would have been a writer if he hadn’t gone to Vietnam,” Hagen said.
“It was the traumatic that upset him. He was on his way to becoming an academic like I became, and a teacher. And I’m not sure he would have written the novels; he would have written academic articles.”
Not only was O’Brien already interested in writing, Hagen said, but it could also act as a means to cope with the devastating situations of the Vietnam War.
“So, the writing becomes a kind of therapy for getting it out so that he doesn’t become mentally ill or unbalanced,” Hagen said.
“The writing saved him. It’s interesting in the last 10-15 years; he’s been able to write about non-Vietnam things. His daughter at one point asked him if he was going to write about anything else. His answer was something along the lines of he thinks he can, but he’s got to get through this, so he keeps writing Vietnam-related [material] until recently.”
Hagen said this is why writing can and does have a huge impact, one that he wants his students to understand and glean from O’Brien’s visit to campus.
