“ I’ll never die. I’m skimming across the surface of my own history, doing loops and spins, and when I take a high leap into the dark and come down thirty years later, I realize it is as Tim is trying to save Timmy’s life with a story.”(pg.246). In the final chapter “The Lives of the Dead,” O’Brien uses his memories of Linda as a means of finding closure to the novel. I believe the reason for his decision on ending the book with that particular chapter is because stories can save and change an individual and this particular story has had the most influence on Tim’s life. Linda and the stories, dreams, and imaginations have brought together the stories of the soldiers keeping many things alive and show that life a precious.

“The Lives of the Dead” brings Linda’s death and the soldiers all together into one big pot. It is because of Linda’s death the stories are told. Linda was dead and Tim had to understand. After her death is when he started to practice the magic of stories. Some dreamed up and some written down. Because of these stories he would be able to go to sleep knowing she’d be there waiting for him and he would be happy. At times

It’s true stories can save people. Stories are a way of getting one’s emotions out and sharing them with other hoping they will understand what you are going through. It is always to have someone go through what you are experiencing then to be alone. “The thing about a story is that you dream it as you tell it, hoping that others might then dream along with you, and in this was memory and imagination and language combine to make spirits in the head.”(pg.230). By having Linda’s story at the end we as the readers understand why Tim is the way he is and why he has been creating these stories we are reading. The death of Linda impacted the author tremendously. Thinking about Linda and having her there with him when he shuts his eyes puts him in a happy state of mind and having the ability to do that gave him the power to get through his war experience. When Tim describes the secret meeting places and dreams he was having about Linda, he describes them as miracles. Stories are a way to cope with the bad and think about the good. “Almost everything is invented. But it’s not a game it’s a form.”(pg179) It’s a form of getting through life. Also, by writing these stories he is keeping Linda alive. Linda is someone who will be close to Tim and Timmy for all times.

Linda is the creator of Tim O’Brien’s magnificent stories. It’s a very powerful story and it brings a lot of person

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