Symbols

Up to where I am at in the book right now (pg 172), I have picked up on a few symbols that O'Brien uses, but two have really stuck out to me. Both occur in the chapter titled In the Field. To me, they are very similar and can be grouped together to mean the same thing. They are the monsoons and the rain. On page 155, the author states that "the monsoons seemed to be a lasting element of the war." The soldiers feel like the weather will never stop. They think that the monsoons will last forever. They are tired of the weather and just want to get out of it. Now substitute the word "war" for weather and monsoon. The soldiers feel like the war will never stop. They think that the war will last forever. They are tired of the war and just want to get out of it. Along with the monsoons is the rain. "The rain was the war and you had to fight it" (156). The soldiers were not only fighting the enemy, but also the rain, a two-front war. They are just tired of it all and seem like they want to go home.