Imagination turns memories into a more emotional, and therefore entertaining, version of the events that truly occurred. Thinking back to Halloween of 2005, my memory of this night is one of a comical nature. I was dressed in a white unicorn onesie, with no cares in the world and an excitement about All Hallow’s Eve that still exists today. Around the third hour of trick-or-treating, I remember stumbling, due to the darkness, and falling into a ditch. In my mind, this was quite a deep ditch, more of a hole, and it took a lot of both time and effort to remove my six-year-old self. When asking my aunt what really happened that night, the answer was much simpler: I stumbled and fell into a small ditch, about five inches deep, and then stood up …show more content…
Instead of getting dry facts about what happened in Vietnam, O’Brien allows us, the readers, to view the war from a soldier’s perspective. Looking at the war through this lens enhances deepens the meaning of the book in many ways. There’s a reason why a great majority of people would rather read a memoir about the war, rather than a history textbook. Being able to take part in O’Brien’s experiences allows the readers to establish a connection to the novel and the author in a way that only adds to the experience. Being able to feel the emotion coming from a writer’s words makes it easier for people to form an attachment to the message the author is trying to convey. When a reader allows herself to form an emotional attachment to the words a writer is presenting, her mind will also be more open to a deeper understanding of what the memoir truly means. A reader’s experiences can also contribute to the overall meaning of a memoir. Most memoirs are centered around a theme that the author is reflecting on or questioning. By reading such memoirs, the readers mind is opened up and she is also able to reflect on her own past relating to the theme. When the reader is able to relate to the novel in some way, she is also able to interpret how she feels the theme may relate in her life, which can give a whole new meaning to the