Relationships are very potent forces. It may transform a person's course of life or many people's lives positively or negatively. The relationship among members of family is particularly resilient, and it is considered to be able to stand the test of nearly everything which it faces. Nevertheless, family ties may sometimes be broken. There are multiple things which could tear apart family ties and relationships, such as death and war. Death solely cuts the bond very openly and destroys their brotherhood. Warfare could make a combatant behave oddly toward other people and to never go back to their former selves. "The Red Convertible" exactly is what happens to brothers Lyman and Henry. Lyman narrates the story, which explores his relationship with Henry before and after the combat experience of Henry in Vietnam, where he was detained as a war prisoner. The appearance of Henry, the brothers’ picture, and the convertible represent the transformation in their bond before and after Henry returns from the combat.
The physical look of Henry has transformed after he came back home from the combat, along with how he relates with his family. When he came from the war, Henry dressed in the similar clothing every day. Henry dressed in his military boots and a military jacket, and he certainly did not remove them. This reluctance to take off his military attires demonstrates that he feels he is forever linked to the combat. Typically, once fighters dress in their military garments, even following their home return, it symbolizes their want to return to the war since it is all that they have done for the better part of their lives. Often, it is believed that army officers feel the necessity to return to war to die within a condition which they had lived with. Also, the soldiers who are lucky to return home experience guiltiness for their life and wish to go back to the combat and die to remove the guilt they have. Henry's personality changed after returning home from the battle. He was a cheerful youthful man who made jokes with his brother, like after going to Alaska he teased, "I always wondered what it was like to have long pretty hair" (p. 106), after discovering that Susy's hair touched the ground. Lyman remembers these moments and realizes his brother's change from being joyful and playful man who is unable to laugh anymore, in which he states "He'd always had a joke, then, too, and now you couldn't get him to laugh" (p. 107-108). Also, Henry was unable to sit motionless when he returned from the warfare; possibly being scared that sitting still for so long would make him remember the war images.
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The image which their younger sister Bonita takes of the two brothers reveals the change which Henry experienced before and after the combat. The photograph contrasts Henry's personality pre- and post-war. Lyman labels himself as being "right out in the sun, big and round." (p. 111), which shows that his personality is complete and satisfied with life, whereas Henry‘s soul is broken and afraid of his war experiences. Besides, the image introduces the first time which Henry smiles after returning from war. Lyman describes his smile as if it "looked as like it might have hurt his face" (p. 111) and this symbolizes the combat outcome and the incapacity to be really joyful once more.
Further, the convertible symbolizes the freedom which Lyman and Henry had and their bond. Their road trip demonstrates the freedom they had during the summer before Henry joining the combat. The war destroys the freedom which they had before the fight. Henry's lack of interest in the car reveals his loss of freedom and his feeling of slavery towards the war. The two brothers did not worry about the world and travelled across the US together. Their bond became stronger after buying the convertible, repairing it, and travelling the world. However, all this changed when Henry came from the war, and he was not interested in the car, and more significantly, his brother. Moreover, the convertible embodies the war-ravaged relations of army officers. When Lyman destroys the convertible having spent so much money and time fixing it, this signifies the broken relationship with his brother. After Henry confronting Lyman about damaging the car, Henry responds "when I left, that car was running like a watch. Now I don't even know I can get it to start again, let alone get it anywhere near its old condition" (p. 110). What Henry tries to communicate is that he has no knowledge of fixing the broken bond with Henry and is uncertainty with their relationship's future. Besides, Henry is aware that he cannot mend their broken relationship. He tells his brother "that red car looks like shit" (p. 110); meaning that he knew their relationship was already severed. While Henry is working on repairing the car, it demonstrates his effort to repair his cordial bond to his best capability and henry's reason for attempting to restore their bond is his recognition of the love of his brother. After Henry intentionally drowned in the river, the bond which he had with his brother was ruined. Lyman was left with the car Henry had repaired for him. He drowned the car into the river as a way of getting rid of the guilty of being unable to rescue his brother.
In conclusion, the Vietnam War struck a fatal blow to the brothers’ relationship. Henry and Lyman’s relationship experienced a change with the significant change being symbolized by Henry’s appearance, a post-war picture of the brothers, and the convertible which they bought together. The appearance of Henry symbolizes his connection to the fight he left behind in another nation and this impacted his interaction with his brother. His army clothes and boots symbolized the war which caused his passing away, although he had already left the battle. The image of the two brothers was a comparison of them before and after the war, while the convertible signifies the real bond between the brothers and how the car's condition shows their relationship's integrity.
Reference
Erdrich, L. (2009). The Red Convertible . HarperLuxe.