Post Traumatic Stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that occurs in people who have been exposed to traumatic events. In the cause of Kien the main character in “The Sorrow of War" we witness his daily struggle with the trauma and violence brought on by the war. Symptoms of PTSD include flashbacks, nightmares, frightening thoughts, avoidance of placeless, events, or objects that are reminders of that experience. Heightened anxiety which could cause difficultly to sleep and having angry outburst. PSTD is caused when a person goes through, sees or learns about an event that causes intense fear, helplessness or horror (http://www.mayoclinic.com). Symptoms varies from person to person, Kien has some of these symptoms, such as constant flash backs, lack of sleep and avoidance of people, and hopelessness. Through the course of the book, Kien's daily struggle with PTSD is apparent, as he tries to move on with his life. Writing is Kiens only way of dealing with the difficult memories and terrifying images of war that won't leave his mind.
The first symptom Kien exhibits in the novel are flashbacks. His flashbacks appear in the forms of daydreams and nightmares. The first flashback Kien experienced was when he was working his post war assignment of retrieving the bodies of the soldiers who were lost in battle. This task required him to revisit old battlefields and in doing so bring back some old, haunting memories which he wished to have not remembered. Not all of Kien's flashbacks cause him pain; Some of them are memoires he wish to etch into to his heart so that he would never forget them. Like when he was watching a pantomime show, there was a particular scene where the artist had bend over ,writhing his body in pain. This caused Kein to associate this scene to another scene where Thinh had similarly crouched in sobbing despair, praying for Ho Bia (Ninh, pg35). Kien had forgotten all about the pantomime and was caught up in the moment. This flash back brought...