Characterization of Elroy Berdahl

With alarming and heart-tearing imagery, Tim O’Brien teleports the audience to war-torn Vietnam with an army platoon “humping” through the countryside in The Things They Carried.

Following through the novel can be a challenge because of the lack of major plot throughout the book. Each chapter follows new characters in an omniscient light, as Tim O’Brien, the author, is also the narrator. However, the use of recurring characters and repetition of motifs and key phrases creates a sense of cohesion.

One of my favorite chapters at this point in time is “On the Rainy River.” This chapter takes a step back from Vietnam to when O’Brien receives his draft notice. The “moral” debate seems to stem from this question: to fight or not to fight?

The most vivid picture that answers this question is painted by the characters. The characterization in The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien is what really makes the novel “a true war story.”

But the perspective from people outside the war, like the man O’Brien encounters on his way to Canada often shed light on this question.

As Tim O’Brien wrestles with the “morals” of his draft notice, he takes to the road, abandons his family and heads for Canada. This journey reflects the motif of metaphorical and literal travel.

When he finally stops at Tip Top Lodge, O’Brien meets Elroy Berdahl, an 81 year old man with “sharp” eyes.

Berdahl, more than just a flat character, acts as a symbol for Jesus in “On the Rainy River.”

The first clue comes when he invites O’Brien to dinner:

"Dinner at 5:30," he said. "You eat fish? "

"Anything,” I said.

Elroy grunted and said, "I'll bet” (46).

In the Bible, Jesus sits and eats with his disciples “bread and fish,” which is used to feed a multitude of people.  Additionally, Despite the sparse dialogue, O’Brien purposely uses dialogue that characterizes Berdahl as silent and watchful. The dialogue is sparse and cut to the bare minimum amount of words. The use of “grunted” in the dialogue tags gives Berdahl a rough demeanor and shows that he is a man of few words.

Furthermore, as O’Brien describes his nightly routine with Berdahl, he says, “One evening, just at sunset, he pointed up at an owl circling over the violet-lighted forest to the west. "Hey, O’Brien," he said. "There's Jesus. The man was sharp — he didn't miss much. Those razor eyes.” (47).

Berdahl refers directly to the “owl” as Jesus in one of his few lines. The two share several features in common: both have “razor eyes” and are protectors. As the “owl” watches over the forest, Berdahl watches over O’Brien. In the Bible, Jesus is the protector of his disciples and all the people of earth. Additionally, like Jesus, Berdahl does not directly interfere with O’Brien’s “moral” debate. He does not ask O’Brien any questions about what he is doing at Tip Top Lodge in a way that is characteristic of a Christ figure.

The day that O’Brien plans to leave, Berdahl takes him fishing up the Rainy River. As they anchor just off Canadian shores, O’Brien says, “It struck me then that he must've planned it. I'll never be certain, of course, but I think he meant to bring me up against the realities, to guide me across the river and to take me to the edge and to stand a kind of vigil as I chose a life for myself” (53).

Water is a symbol of life, rebirth and change in the Bible. Jesus turns water into wine, and when the world flooded with God’s wrath, those who were on Noah’s Arc survived to see a reborn world. Berdahl takes O’Brien to the river, where he is forced to chose for himself the direction he wants his life to lead. At this stepping stone, O’Brien faces the possibility that he would have to leave his old life behind and start a completely new one. Like the archetypal Christ figure, Berdahl “[guides him] across the river” but ultimately O’Brien is in control.

When makes his choice to go to war and abandon his morals, O’Brien cries and describes the sound. As he cries,

“Elroy Berdahl remained quiet. He kept fishing. He worked his line with the tips of his fingers, patiently, squinting out at his red and white bobber on the Rainy River. His eyes were flat and impassive. He didn't speak. He was simply there, like the river in the late-summer sun. And yet by his presence, his mute watchfulness, he made it real. He was the true audience. He was a witness, like God, or like the gods, who look on an absolute silence with as we live our lives, as we make our choices or fail to make them” (57).

When O’Brien describes Berdahl as “a witness, like God,” and “flat and impassive,” Berdahl appears omniscient. Omniscience is characteristic of the archetypal Christ or god-like figure. In this passage, he is described as “like God, or like the gods,” so it could be argued that Elroy Berdahl does not symbolize Jesus. I believe that Berdahl embodies what those figures collectively symbolize: a guardian and a “witness” who watches O’Brien’s life in “absolute silence.” Because Berdahl, as well as God and the gods, do not intervene, O’Brien conveys the importance of free will and self governance. However, he loses both in Vietnam, along with his innocence.

As the book goes on, I hope to hear from more civilians and O’Brien’s family. He briefly mentioned his daughter and parents, which has piqued my curiosity about them. O’Brien does an excellent job at building suspense. He plants information before the event occurs to show the reader what happens before the characters do; a very gothic trait.