Norman Bowker's Acceptance Of His Father

In this chapter Norman Bowker begins to explain the relationship and acceptance of his father. Norman and his father don’t have a bad relationship but Norman is held to a high standard. When he was drafted into the war he felt that he would have to do his best or not go to war at all. He felt as though his father was expecting him to earn medals and the highest of military ranks. Therefore he had done what he had to do to receive these metals. He received the combat infantryman’ s badge, the air medal, the army commendation medal, the bronze star, and the Purple Heart. However he didn’t earn the silver star, he didn’t know how to tell his father this because of the situation that he was placed in during the time. Norman thinks to himself about …show more content…
It as though he believes that his father respects the medals and wants him to do well but he also that these medals are given out for killing and men getting injured. To his father these medals are something that is given for the wrong reasons not for reasons of good but reasons of death and destruction. I believe that Norman has this perception as well because on page 135 he says; “The ribbons looked good on the uniform in his closet, and if his father were to ask, he would’ve explained what each signified and how he was proud of all of them, especially the Combat Infantryman’s badge, because it meant he had been there as a real soldier and had done all the things soldiers do, and therefore it wasn’t such a big deal that he could not bring himself to be uncommonly brave.” But what a lot of readers don’t realize is how he earned all of these badges medals. While he was in the war one of his men and good friend was shot and killed on his watch. Norman regrets not jumping in front of the bullet and not being able to do anything to …show more content…
A common thing with death is that someone always wishes they could have done more to help, weather that be taking the bullet or just being there with that person. Therefore what Norman is going through is regret because I didn’t cover him or because he wasn’t there to take that bullet. Norman doesn’t believe that he deserves the medals from that day even though his father does. Normans father showed a lot of pride towards the badges he had received even though he lost his chance to win the Silver Star. Its almost as though Norman feels regret for blowing his chances of receiving the Silver Star, he thinks he let down his father in a way because he couldn’t save that man even though he did his best. His father doesn’t really care about the medals, he more so care that his son came back home alive. His father is proud of him no matter what just because he came home, and he knows that Norman couldn’t do anything to save this young man. His father just wants him to except the fact that he couldn’t do anything to save this boy, he was going to die no matter what he did or could have