Ambush

I denne study guide kan du få hjælp til at analysere novellen "Ambush" af Tim O'Brien. Udover analysehjælpen kan du finde et summary af teksten samt idéer til fortolkning og perspektivering.

Præsentation af teksten

Titel: “Ambush” (1990)
Forfatter: Tim O’Brien
Genre: Short story

Tim O’Brien er amerikansk forfatter. Han var sergent under Vietnamkrigen, og mange af hans værker er baseret på hans oplevelser i den sammenhæng. Han har modtaget adskillige litteraturpriser for sit arbejde.

Novellen “Ambush” stammer fra novellesamlingen The Things They Carried.

Uddrag

Nedenfor kan du læse et kort uddrag fra vores study guide til novellen:

Title

The title of the short story “Ambush” by Tim O’Brien refers to a military tactic which involves a surprise attack by troops (or even a single soldier) lying in wait in a hidden position. The key point in a successful ambush is the element of surprise. It is a tactic which also ensures the attacker’s relative safety, since the target is at a disadvantage and will not have time to put up much of a defense. The title leads readers to think that the story will be about a military ambush, but it also creates expectations of a larger-scale event. However, the incident described is very small-scale: an unplanned ambush by one soldier on another.

We should note that this is set against the background of the Vietnam War, which lasted for 20 years and claimed millions of lives. Moreover, the incident had a great impact on the narrator, and the story mainly focuses on how the ambush has affected him psychologically.

Symbolically, the title refers to the “ambush” of thoughts and memories which still come upon the narrator when he least expects it:

In the ordinary hours of life I try not to dwell on it, but now and then, when I’m reading a newspaper or just sitting alone in a room, I’ll look up and see the young man coming out of the morning fog. (ll. 67-71)