Vocabulary
The Friendship only Laster a Few Seconds
Private First Class Paul Berlin
Plot
Background
100
Lively; moving easily and quickly
What is agile?
100
Who is Mary?
Mary could be the soldier's wife, girlfriend or relative back home.
100
How does P.F.C. Paul Berlin pretend he is not at war?
He pretends he is camping with his dad.
100
Who dies and what kill him?
What is Billy Boy Watkins and a heart attack?
100
Vietnam became a colony of ___________
What is France?
200
Secretiveness; sly behavior.
What is stealth?
200
Why does the soldier feel he is dying for nothing?
He fought in the war and gave up his life but now he is dying and the war is still not over.
200
Why does Toby get so mad at P.F.C. Paul Berlin when he thinks that he is sleeping?
If P.F.C. Paul Berlin is asleep there is nobody to watch Toby's back and he could get killed.
200
Explain why Billy Boy Watkins died the way that he did.
What is he was wreckless as a new soldier and stepped on a mine that caused his foot to be blown off and then he was scared to death?
200
This is the types of governments that existed in the north and the south.
What is communist in the north and pro-western in the south?
300
Bravely.
What is valiantly?
300
Why does the speaker say that she is in second place?
She is not Mary.
300
Throughout the story P.F.C. Paul Berlin is very anxious. What is he so anxious about?
He is anxious about going home and talking to his dad about his time in the war.
300
How does the tone change once Private First Class Paul Berlin reaches the coast?
Changes from dark and fearful to upbeat and lighthearted.
300
This is what O'Brien used to cope with his memories of the war.
What is his imagination?
400
Tendency to remain either at rest or in motion.
What is inertia?
400
What does the speaker mean in saying that she became someone else but wasn't lying?
To the soldier she WAS Mary and she never claimed to be Mary she was just there for the soldiers.
400
What is author trying to get across to the reader when he constantly refers to the main character as Private First Class Paul Berlin?
The author is trying to emphasize that Paul is the new guy and has not been given a nickname.
400
Explain why P.F.C. Paul Berlin does not get close to anybody.
What is he is afraid of losing his friends and does not want to get hurt of they die.
400
O'Brien's most persistent theme
What is the lingering memory of Vietnam?
500
Passed around rather than through.
What is skirted?
500
What does the speak mean in saying "the friendship only lasted a few seconds"
The soldier only knew the nurse a short time but the encounter had enough meaning.
500
What is the main conflict that occurs in the story and what type of conflict is it?
It is an internal conflict and P.F.C. Paul Berlin is fearing fear itself.
500
Complete a plot diagram for the story.
What is see board
500
This is the year a peace agreement was signed and US troops withdrew from Vietnam.
What is 1973?
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