answer to #1

Rating: Null/10 (17 December 2009)

While there are no documented cases of prisoners of war in Vietnam being forced to play Russian roulette, it is meant to symbolize the futility of patriotism during the war. If you are drafted for the war, and not in college, you have the choice to go, in which case you will almost certainly face terrible injuries, be they physical or mental, or to run, in which case you will be exiled by your friends and family. It isn't a question of whether or not you'll come out unharmed, but rather how long you can last. I think that this was a good method to use to get this point across to the audience in a subtle way, while at the same time providing a device for character development, which is a large part of the story. I also think that while Russian roulette has never been a documented form of torture in the Vietnam war, it is an effective way to sum up a lot of the cruel murder that took place at the time, as well as the psychological damage to any survivors.