Closure at the Wall an Analysis of Bobbie Ann Mason's In Country

Closure at the Wall In the novel In Country, Bobbie Ann Mason writes about a young woman and her uncle searching to heal their scars caused by the Vietnam War. Sam Hughes, the young woman and Emmett Smith, her uncle, travel to Washington D.C. in the summer of 1984. Their destination is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial or the Wall, possibly one of the nation's most dramatic monuments. Some come to the Wall in dedication, while …

…and women who were killed in the Vietnam War. At first sight, the memorial seems somber and intimidating, however, it has, is and will remain a source of faith and closure. Sam's grandmother says, "Coming up on this wall all of the sudden and seeing how black it was, it was so awful, but then I came down in it and saw that white carnation blooming out of that crack and it gave me hope" (245).