Fallen Angels

          War has a terrible impact on humans that leaves them with many questions, such as whether people should kill one another, how families feel about a death of a loved one and how life can go on as usual in the US during the Vietnam War.

          In the book Fallen Angels, the main character Richard Perry, is conflicted about whether people should kill one another.  Perry thinks for a long time about killing another human being in order to save himself. In the beginning of the book Perry just closes his eyes and shoots while in combat, but towards the end of the story he adapts to the war and becomes accustomed to killing effortlessly. “Then it was as if I were suddenly awake. I lifted the M-16 and started firing it in his face. I emptied the clip.” (180)  From beginning to end, however, Perry still has the feeling in his gut it is not right to kill a human. While writing a letter to his brother Perry states his feelings about war; “I just told him that the war was about us killing people and about people killing us, and I didn’t see much more to it. Maybe there were times when it was right. I had thought that this war was right, but (maybe) it was only right from a distance.” (269)

          Families always grieve over loved ones, who have passed no matter the situation, and Vietnam was a long way away and Americans didn’t really understand the point of being there. When a lieutenant named Gearhart accidentally set off a flare during a battle, it left a fellow soldier named Turner exposed. Turner was killed during the battle leaving the lieutenant feeling much guilt.  Gearhart had the task of writing the letter to Turner’s parents, but Perry rewrote the letter for him because he as well felt much pain for the fellow soldier. Perry thought it would be hard enough for the parents to hear about the death of their son and to get over that. The families don’t understand what is really going on in Vietnam. “‘The letter I wrote’, I said, ‘is going to sit better with his family. You might feel bad, like you need to get something off your chest, but don’t drop it on his folks.’” (172)