on Norman

We see in "Speaking of Courage" Norman Bowker struggling while trying to find life after war. Norman was snatched up for war at a crucial age in his life, the transition between being in his later teenage high school years, to settling into young adulthood with a sweetheart or a career path ahead of him. Norman recalls his high school days as he circles the lake, longing for his friends, and carefree conversations by the lake. He see's his old sweetheart cutting her grass, and it stings him both in memory of what it was like pre-war, and the cold reality that she has a life of her own, something he feel he lacks.

While O'Brien is able to find relief in story telling, Norman Bowker is unable to talk to anyone about his experiences, instead he can only fantasize about talking with Sally, his father, and even in his imagination he struggles to truly tell them what it was like. He is longing to only express himself and have others understand what he was going through, as shown by his encounter with the A&W box. I think O'Brien was contrasting the difference between himself and Norman, to show that because O'Brien had a release, he was able to cope with peace, and because Normal did not, it led to his tragic suicide.