Abstract: In the story, Lyman and his brother Henry live on a reservation. They buy a red convertible one day. They both paid for it and thus shared the car. Lyman and Henry went many places in the car. They went to Montana and then they went to Alaska. They went to Alaska because one day when they were driving down the road they saw a girl with her hand out. They picked her up and asked where she lived, and she said Alaska. They then decided to go there. They lived in a tent by her house. They stayed during the summer, but they then left when the weather started turning colder. When they got home, Henry had to go to the army. He didn't go to the army though. Instead he went to the Marines. Henry then went to Vietnam. He told Lyman when he left that the car was now his, but Lyman just kept it in the garage and didn't drive it. Lyman wasn't concerned with the draft because he was always good with numbers. When Henry came home, he was different from when he left. He became very quiet and fidgety. He was also jumpy and mean. Lyman and his family knew that Henry needed help. Lyman then thought about the car. Henry hadn't even looked at the car since he got home. Lyman ruined the car. He hit it with a hammer and ruined the muffler. He beat the car up. Henry then eventually found it. He said how it looked like shit, and Lyman ruined it. Henry then spent numerous days fixing the car. He fixed the car though. One day they went on a ride in the car. They went toward the Red River because the water was high. They then watched the current. Henry then said how he knew Lyman ruined the car. He then wanted to give the car to Lyman, but he didn't want it. They got into a fight. Henry jumped in the river sometime later. When he jumped in, the current started to take him. Henry's boots then started to fill up, and he drowned. Lyman then took the car and put it in first gear and took his foot off the clutch. He then watched as the car drove into the river.
Response: The war obviously changed Henry. He probably had PTSD. He wasn't himself when he returned. He was jumpy and quiet. The war left deep psychological scars in Henry. He probably was left with the fear of someone sneaking up on him to kill him. At the end of the story when he goes into the river, I don't think he wanted to kill himself, but when his boots started to fill, he didn't really care. He was probably depressed and didn't have it in him to try to fight the current which was a result of his experiences in war. The car symbolizes Henry and Lyman's relationship. When they bought the car, the car was new and nice. Henry and Lyman's relationship at the time was good. They didn't have any problems really and were able to travel the country together. When Henry went to war, the car stayed in the garage and was stagnate just like Henry and Lyman's relationship. Lyman would write to Henry during the war, but Henry wouldn't write back. When Henry returned and Lyman ruined the car, this portrayed Henry and Lyman's new relationship. Their relationship was now battered and wasn't the same. When Henry fixed the car, their relationship was starting to get better. They were able to talk and had a good time at the river. When Henry died and Lyman then drove the car into the river, this symbolized the end of their relationship. The boot also symbolize the war. Henry wore the boots. Henry would always wear the scars of war, and the war would always affect him. The boots were also the cause of his death, but in reality the cause was the war. The war caused Henry to change. He was depressed and had issues which I think caused Henry not want to fight the current when he was drowning and just let it take him. The war caused Henry to not want to live and just let whatever happen to him happen. I think Lyman felt guilty about his brother's death. He felt bad because he said he always had luck. He had the luck and wasn't drafted into the war like his brother. He felt guilty that he had more luck than his brother because it could have been him that was sent to war. His brother then came home and wasn't the same which made Lyman feel bad. He just wanted to have his old brother back, and he also realized that it could have easily been him that was changed if his name was picked, and he would have been sent to war.
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