APO 96225

While reading "APO 96225" by Larry Rottman, the first thing I noticed was the irony. The situational irony in this story gives it emotion. The irony brings feelings of sadness, but also brings humor. It is sad that the soldier's parents aren't willing to accept his actions in war, but humorous  because the reaction is different than what is expected. The reader expects the parents to console the son, for his actions, but rather he is told "Please don't write such depressing letters. You're upsetting your mother (14-15). In such a short story, Rottman is able to encapsulate many things into 20 lines. He shows the public opinion of the Vietnam War. He also relates the many emotions that were swirling around. He shows the sadness, and bad that it brought. The thing that stuck out to me was how the parents were against the son even though he was simply doing his job. The way his parents disown his actions seemed terrible because the soldier was simply doing his job.