Summary Of Ghost Soldiers 'By Tim O' Brien

824 Words2 Pages

In my book, Ghost Soldiers, 121 soldiers were volunteers to attempt to rescue 513 allied prisoners of a war in a Japanese camp. These prisoners were tortured quite often for three years. They faced starvation, abuse from Japanese guards, and diseases from the tropical region. The story is about the prisoners, the unit performing the raid, and the Filipino who assisted them along the way. A large group of American soldiers at Palawan told U.S. commanders to the danger of mass POW, prisoners of war, executions as the retreated from the Philippines. As a result the went with a mission to rescue the POWs from the prison camp. The book tells you about events that lead up to the raid: the camp conditions, how strong the will of the prisoners were …show more content…

During and after his treatment, O’Brien accepts Kiley’s skill, courage, and kindness. When O’Brien returns from his recovery about a month later, Kiley has been scarred and shipped off and a new medic named Bobby Jorgenson has taken his place. When O’Brien is shot the second time, Jorgenson is incapable of treating his shock, and the result is a traumatizing, painful experience for O’Brien. The realization that he was close to dying for no good reason leaves O’Brien simmer. He pledges to have revenge on the frightened, unskilled Jorgenson. He spends more time in the hospital and then is transferred to the battalion supply section, a far more comfortable and less dangerous assignment. Meanwhile, his backs is in a lot and he so he had to sleep on his stomach and smudge antibacterial ointment on himself a couple times a day. During the miserable nights, he renews his pledge to make Jorgenson suffer like he …show more content…

He listens to stories from his friends; especially one about a soldier who decided to go for a swim and ended up with a disease that was later treated by Jorgenson, but he is most concerned with finding Jorgenson. Mitchell Sanders in heartens O’Brien to leave Jorgenson alone, saying that he is one of the Alpha Company now and suggesting that O’Brien is no longer a member of the company. Next morning, O’Brien runs into Jorgenson. Jorgenson apologizes for his incompetent treatment of O’Brien, saying that he was scared and that since O’Brien was shot. He has felt a great deal of remorse. O’Brien begins resenting Jorgenson for making him feel guilty. O’Brien tries to join his friends in his plans for revenge, but the only one who will acknowledge to get involved is Azar. The two go to mess with Jorgenson as he serves an all night duty. O’Brien says the amount of fear one feels rises as one sits alone; being scared and feeling like he is being watched, wondering and worrying. At midnight, they set up some ropes, which gives the illusion that the enemy in the bush. O’Brien notices that with Jorgenson, you can feel his fear. Later, they set flares, and when Jorgenson bursts from his position and rolls toward a heap of sandbags, O’Brien finally feels clear. He tells Azar that he’s had enough, but Azar, who loves to make trouble, wants to finish what they’ve started. O’Brien

Open Document