APO 96225

At first, I did not understand this poem. But, after reading the questions and rereading the poem, it made a little more sense. The central purpose of this poem is describing the relationship of a son overseas and the reaction it omits from his parents and most specifically his mother. I felt like this poem was an accurate representation of a lot of people during the era of war and especially the war in Vietnam. Through the diction of the poem, the reader is able to see the truth that the poet is presenting. Often, people leave out major details to protect their loved ones from the harsh reality. When the mother asks her son to "tell us everything", he follows his mothers request and writes the gory details that he had been leaving out in his previous letters. Following this response, the soldiers father tells the son to not write any more letters like that because they upset his mother. I feel like this was the mentality of many people during the Vietnam war and just any war in general. People want to know what is going on. Especially when loved ones are involved, people want to be aware and knowledgeable. However, when the truth comes out, people would rather have not known in the first place because the truth can cause pain or disturbance. In the end, the soldier goes back to writing vague letters, and I don't blame him. Is it better to hold back than to say the entire truth?