Paco's Story: Analysis of Major Characters
"Paco's Story: Analysis of Major Characters" delves into the complex lives of individuals shaped by the traumatic experiences of the Vietnam War. The narrative centers on Paco Sullivan, the only survivor of a devastating firefight at Fire Base Harriet, where he grapples with feelings of survivor's guilt while navigating his physical and emotional scars. The story is enriched by the presence of omniscient ghosts from Fire Base Harriet, who offer insights into both Paco's psyche and the lives of other characters, including the morally ambiguous Gallagher and the supportive medic who rescues Paco.
The dynamics among characters such as Cathy, who oscillates between desire and pity for Paco, and Ernest Monroe, a compassionate former Marine who provides him employment, highlight the varying perceptions of trauma and recovery. Additionally, the portrayal of Jonesy and Lieutenant Stennett illustrates the complexities of military camaraderie and the consequences of wartime decisions. Through these interconnected lives, the analysis captures the struggle for redemption and the haunting memories that persist long after the battles have ended, offering a poignant exploration of the impact of war on personal identity and relationships.
Paco's Story: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Larry Heinemann
First published: 1986
Genre: Novel
Locale: South Vietnam and a small town in the United States
Plot: Impressionistic realism
Time: The 1970's
Paco Sullivan, the main character. He is the sole survivor of a fire fight at Fire Base Harriet, in which ninety-three men died from a combination of North Vietnamese Army attacks and “friendly fire.” Paco is resentful for being the only man left alive from the fight, but he wants to get on with his life. After multiple surgeries, he must use a cane, has horrendous scars, and takes prescription drugs every day. Paco was the booby trap expert for his company, and he killed several men. He also had watched most of the members of his company rape and murder a Vietcong woman. In Vietnam, Paco dealt with life by smoking marijuana and opium; in the United States, he takes tranquilizers and drinks. He travels as far as his money will take him, haunted by the ghosts of Fire Base Harriet. Paco takes a job washing dishes in Boone, a small town. At the end of the book, he leaves after learning that a local college girl initially had been drawn to his scars but finally decided he was pitiful. Paco's life is not even tragic; it is grand melodrama.
The ghosts, from Fire Base Harriet, who narrate the story. There is actually a single narrative voice. The ghosts are omniscient; they see into Paco and all other characters, including the living versions of some of themselves. They are storytellers, always ready to go off on tangents into seemingly irrelevant tales. They also get into Paco's situation while he is semiconscious in Vietnam and into the minds of sleeping “grunts.” If there is a moral voice, which is questionable, it must come from these voices.
Gallagher, who made the decision to rape and personally killed the Vietcong woman. He carried a .357 Magnum in a shoulder holster, in violation of the Geneva Convention, but Paco's booby traps and many other actions on both sides violated that agreement. Gallagher was a tall, big, and rangy American who had obtained a dragon tattoo in Singapore stretching from his palm to his elbow. He used it to scare the Vietnamese and half of the Americans. He was one of Paco's close friends.
Cathy, an education major who lives in Paco's hotel and who watches him wash dishes in the back of his grill, where she parades around in towels, underwear, or nothing but panties. She also deliberately makes noise in her room, which Paco can hear, when making love with her boyfriend. Paco finds her diary in her room and discovers that she has been fanta-sizing about him and has come to regard him as pitiful.
Jonesy, another of Paco's army friends, an expert with a pearl-handled straight razor. He was one of the few who would wait up for Paco to set his booby traps and then come back into camp.
Lieutenant Stennett, who, among other errors, called in an artillery strike directly on Fire Base Harriet, wiping out the command, himself included.
Amedic, a man from Bravo Company brought in to clean up Fire Base Harriet. He finds Paco, somehow still alive, and ministers to him. Once Paco makes it alive to a base hospital, the medic quits field duty, turns his gun over to another medic who was a conscientious objector, and serves out his term in a base camp, later thinking that if not for his alcoholism, caused somehow by Paco, he would have made a fine doctor.
The night nurse, who serves in Paco's ward in Vietnam. She watches over him and is the only “love interest” in the book. One night, she gives Paco oral sex, knowing he has had none for a long time and that after his operations few women may want to be with him, though she appears wrong about that.
Ernest Monroe, the only person in Boone who will give Paco a job. As a former Marine and recipient of two Purple Hearts, he knows when a solder needs a job, and he never pressures Paco to tell him his story, though he is curious.
Jesse, a drifter who wanders into the grill right before closing, telling stories of travels across the country. He had been a paratrooper in Vietnam. He is approximately as capable as Paco of getting along in society, traveling across the country taking odd jobs.