Speaking of Courage

    In this film we adapted "Speaking of Courage" highlighting some of the primary thematic work done in this chapter. In the chapter, Norman fells trapped by his situation, this is represented by constant allusions to orbiting and rotation.  In this film we continue this imagery by constantly returning to the turning of the car. In the chapter Bowker is also characterized as a traumatized man who feels eminence grief from loosing Kiowa. This is shown by having a flashback to Vietnam were he is walking with a friend next to the Song Tra Bong. Then, back home his friend slowly fades away, leaving Norman lonely. This brings us to the final theme considered in this video, Bowker's inability to share his experiences with others. On the surface level this is represented by using the line "do you want to hear about the time I almost got the silver star." By framing his loss as an act of bravery, Norman is removing the emotional weight of such loss. This theme is further seen through specific choices made in each encounter. When he is talking to his dad, Norms question is not responded to in any way. His dad stays locked on watching the baseball which takes prescience as the only sound when the camera focuses on the dad character. Norman leaves knowing that he is not going to get a response. In the second encounter, Norm attempts to tell his story to the friend at home. When he does this Norman stays on the street, unable to connect with that friend on any level. And similarly to the first encounter his question goes without any response, furthered by Norman screaming "hey."  In the third and final encounter, Norman gets a response. first in confusion, then in Vietnamese. showing that even if others do respond to norm, he would be unable to understand their response as a traumatized man. In the final shot of the film, as the credits role, we see Norman speaking, this is showing how we as society at large have abandoned Norman. Once he is able to speak, we no longer care. The credits are the end of the audiences attention, the end of societies attention. Additional meaning can be seen in the him sitting just behind the fence to a baseball field. just outside of America.
        The film was intentionally made to allow for further analysis in comparison to O'Brien's original work and as a stand alone piece.  In the above paragraph I have just identified the primary thematic comparisons. Additionally, this film should not be viewed as strict adaptation of O'Brien's original text, while it does carry similar plot points, the intention of the piece was to highlight some of the major themes.