The Desire to Survive

The battlefields of Vietnam are a very real and continuing nightmare to most who were there. The men faced horrendous conditions and were often in constant danger from any array of situations. Those who did survive often exhibited a strong will to survive and this is certainly true of the men in Tyson's platoon. It's evident from Tyson's recollections that the men were fatigued and desired only to survive. Some, including Brandt, faked illness in an effort to be taken off the battlefields. The fact that they all realize that they could be killed at any time makes them nervous and edgy, and it's this desperation that contributes greatly to the massacre. Had Tyson's men not been so desperate to survive and fearful that they would not, the entire massacre may have been avoided.

On a smaller scale, this desperation to survive is seen in...