He killed All the Houseplants and went back to bed...or did he?

When I first started reading In the Lake of the Woods I was so unsure of how it would connect to the Vietnam War. It’s not your traditional “the horrors of war” novel. O’Brien takes a different approach of explaining the aftermath of being in combat. So far we have seen interviews and read articles about people who are permanently affected by the Vietnam War. O’Brien’s John Wade is a stark contrast to this. He does all that he can to let the affects of Vietnam leave him for good. From enlisting in the army to his run for State Senate, they are all calculating plans to almost change his past. Yet it all leads him to failure.

Despite all his efforts, the effects of War and his past are ever present in John’s life. He kills all the houseplants with boiling water while reciting, “Kill Jesus”. This act somehow gives him solace, but it is only temporary. The flashbacks to his childhood and time spent in Vietnam still continue to haunt him.

What was so strange to me about all of this was reading John’s letters while he was in Vietnam. In a weird sense it seemed as if he almost enjoyed his life there. He found happiness in his identity as the Sorcerer… that was until things started going downhill for his platoon. Then John’s attitude began to change. In his later life he does all he can to convince himself, lie to himself, about much of what happened there- most notably the incident where he kill Weatherby. He also is greatly affected by his flashback of the My Lai Massacre (ps. thanks Jason for the earlier blog post about My Lai, it was very helpful).

John loses the election because it is made known that he was involved with the My Lai Massacre. This is one secret that the Sorcerer couldn’t even make disappear. This book really made you think about truth and how deception can lead to destruction.

As far as Kathy’s disappearance is concerned, while I want to believe it was all a plan and John rode away in the boat to go meet her so they could start their lives over again, I don’t think that’s what really happened. I’m thankful to O’Brien for leaving the choice up to the reader. It again makes you think about truth and what it really is. What was the truth? Did John the murder Kathy subconsciously as a result from his post traumatic stress? Did Kathy fall overboard? Was it all a big plan and she’s waiting for him somewhere along the lake? You never find out the truth…O’Brien leaves you to make your own truth.