Today, many veterans returning from war are displaced. In this chapter, he talks about a Vietnam War soldier named Norman Bowker who returns home from the war. In the chapter Speaking of Courage in the book "The Things They Carried" written by Tim O'Brien, Norman feels alienated from the world and everyone in it. A soldier returning from the Vietnam War drives around a lake on the Fourth of July in his father's big Chevrolet, but then realizes he has nowhere to go. He begins to remember his father, his ex-girlfriend and his childhood friend. Norman talks about all the medals he has won. He begins to think about his father's pride in these badges and he begins to remember how he almost owned the Silver Star but missed his chance. He continues to circle the lake again and again. He keeps imagining telling his father how he almost won the Silver Star, but didn't. This article will analyze Speaking of Courage from the perspective of New Criticism and Formalism. There is a lot of irony in this chapter. Much of the irony provided in this chapter relates to the title and the actions Norman takes. “He would have explained how it was still raining and how the clouds were stuck to the terrain, and how the mortar shells seemed to be coming out of the clouds” (141). Norman uses “He would have done it” to mean that if he was talking to someone, he would have said it. Since Norman has someone to talk to, he doesn't talk. This example is ironic because the chapter is called Speaking of Courage, but Norman doesn't speak at all. “'Well, you see, it never stopped raining,' he is said to have said. “The mud was everywhere, you couldn’t escape it. » He would have... middle of paper... the story of Rman. Sally symbolizes mainstream America. She represents mainstream America because when the soldiers returned home, no one wanted to know what happened. In this chapter, you have identified many different literary terms that help you see the book in a new light. I used the critical/formalism lens on the chapter Speaking of Courage, you can find the deeper meaning of the text using this lens. As we analyze this chapter, we can see the irony in the fact that he is not actually speaking. Additionally, when we analyze this chapter we can identify the symbolism of Norman almost winning the Silver Star and we can recognize the symbolism of Norman's ex-girlfriend and friend. After reviewing Speaking of Courage, we have now discovered the deeper meaning that Tim O'Brien focused on in the chapter that we would not have noticed without analyzing it using the lens of criticism and formalism..