Homework answers / question archive / Berkeley High School ENGLISH 102 Chapter 7: “How to Tell a True War Story” 1)According to O'Brien, how do you tell a true war story? What does he mean when he says that true war stories are never about war? In what sense is a “true” war story actually true? That is, in O’Brien’s terms, what is the relationship between historical truth and fictional truth?     Why does this story begin with the line: “This is true

Berkeley High School ENGLISH 102 Chapter 7: “How to Tell a True War Story” 1)According to O'Brien, how do you tell a true war story? What does he mean when he says that true war stories are never about war? In what sense is a “true” war story actually true? That is, in O’Brien’s terms, what is the relationship between historical truth and fictional truth?     Why does this story begin with the line: “This is true

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ENGLISH 102

Chapter 7: “How to Tell a True War Story”

1)According to O'Brien, how do you tell a true war story? What does he mean when he says that true war stories are never about war? In what sense is a “true” war story actually true? That is, in O’Brien’s terms, what is the relationship between historical truth and fictional truth?  

2. Why does this story begin with the line: “This is true.” How does that prepare you, as a reader, for the story? In what sense is “this” true?

3. Find a few of O’Brien’s elements of a “true war story.” (such as, “A true war story is never moral.”) Why does O’Brien believe these elements are important to a “true” war story?

4. Why is the baby water buffalo scene more disturbing than the death of one of O’Brien’s platoon members, Curt Lemon?