This chapter was really short, so I'm going to start off with a quick shout-out to my grandpa. He tells this story of when he was in the army, and he saw this guy sitting around and hitting himself in the head with a hammer, over and over. He went up to him and said, "Why're you doing that?" or something of that nature, and the guy responded, "It feels so good when you stop." That's what I thought of when I read about Jensen's guilt-provoked self-injury. I don't know if that's what was going on with this guy, but nonetheless....
Also, Simile Alert: "Strunk's nose made a sharp snapping sound, like a firecracker...." (p. 59) That's pleasant.
While we're on the topic of things that are disturbing to me, I'd like to address this: "I survived, but it's not a happy ending." (p. 58) Isn't it a little early to be telling us that now, O'Brien? Way to suck the hope out of me, man. Usually, authors wrap their depressing endings in a shiny bow to give the reader some sense of contentment, and I'm worried about what this statement implies....
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