In “Madagascar Plum” the reader first trusts the narrator as a reliable source because so many soldiers have terrible stories from war that they wish to tell. However, we later learn that the narrator is a serious alcoholic as a result of PTSD, and has been this way since the story he is telling occurred. It is quite possible that the story he tells has some truth to it, but it is most likely that many of the details he provides are exaggerations. The combination of his alcoholism and unstable mental state make him a less reliable source.
The narrator’s reasons for ultimately killing the little girl seem to be lacking. He tries to say that he was led to believe that the girl was aiding the enemy army. It seems unlikely that such a small girl would be capable of helping the enemy. The amount of food that she was stealing by night was too insignificant to suggest she was aiding the enemy. He also believes that the girl killed Nam and Phong, a seemingly impossible thing for a tiny girl to do. His guilt over killing the child for unjustified reasons seems to cloud his memory of the story. He cannot even stand the sight of the plum because it reminds him of the girl, showing that he is deeply affected by her death.
The combination of alcohol, PTSD, and guilt make the narrator an unreliable storyteller. It seems plausible that this story actually happened due to the affect it seems to have on him, but his foggy details make it seem like parts are exaggerated. If the narrator were in a clearer state of mind I would be able to sympathize with his traumatic experience a lot more. However, my interpretation of his story is that he is a crazed alcoholic who is not to be trusted.
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