The Deer Hunter This emotionally sweeping story describes the plight and near dissolution of a small circle of friends during the tiring years of the Vietnam War. This far-reaching war epic was innovative in artfully articulating the general public’s disenchantment with the perceived defacement of America’s collective moral codes and the physical and emotional mutilation endured by the nation’s young men as soldiers in the war. Michael Cimino’s The Deer Hunter was able to amass critical acclaim and capture audiences through its intimate and complex analysis of the thematic polarity surrounding survival at the cost of unity among the American soldiers active in the Vietnam War. I will evaluate the following elements as they relate to the theme: The sentiment of preparation and precision associated with the persistent phrase, “one shot” (Niro), the competing symbolism between the purity of nature at home versus the blazing jungles of Vietnam and finally the inner…show more content… His final tokens of support to Steven in his problematic period came in the shape of wooden elephants. Elephants in Buddhism are recognized as a symbol of mental fortitude (Choskyi). Nick is downright destroyed by this time and voluntarily stays in Vietnam reverting to his most tortured state. At one time Nick was a strong proponent of community and would appease those around him: whether it was Linda after her farther physically abused her or Michael when in disagreeance with Stanley’s demeanor. But the betrayal he suffered at Michael’s abandonment following their narrow escape form the Vietcong. The pact he had made with Michael to stay by one another had been broken leaving him without guidance. His vice for gambling was the only stimulus he responded to and so he remained in Vietnam medicating his ills with Russian roulette until he lost, and he lost