Which text from the short story “ambush” by tim o’brien exemplifies the theme of soldiers’ reticence, or inability, to discuss their experiences at war?

1.later, i would remember, kiowa tried to tell me that the man would've died anyway. he told me it was a good kill that i was a soldier and this was a war, that i should shape up and stop staring and ask myself what the dead man would've done if things were reversed.

2. when she was nine, my daughter kathleen asked if i had ever killed anyone. she knew about the war; she knew i'd been a soldier. "you keep writing war stories," she said, "so i guess you must've killed somebody." it was a difficult moment, but i did what seemed right, which was to say, "of course not," and then to take her onto my lap and hold her for a while.

3. i had come to a crouch. it was entirely automatic. i did not hate the young man; i did not see him as the enemy; i did not ponder issues of morality or politics or military duty.

4. but here i want to pretend that she's a grown-up. i want to tell her exactly what happened, or what i remember happening, and then i want to say to her that as a little girl she was absolutely right.

4

2 and 4

1 and 3

3