Ateneo de Davao University

ENGL 112 Creative Writing

Instruction: Write a brief, substantial, and meaningful essay. Maximum of 3 paragraphs,

with maximum of 5 sentences each only.

Read Janet Burroway’s “War Games,” pages 38 – 56 of “Fiction: A Guide to the Narrative
Craft and the short story, “Armor” by John Bengan.

Analyze the short story. Describe the conflict in the story. Determine and explain the
techniques used by the writer in crafting the conflict of the story. Is the story successfully
written or not? Discuss.

You can apply the points mentioned by Janet Burroway and discuss how it operates in John
Bengan’s story.

The tale Armor by John Bengan features strong Queer themes and centers on the
experiences of the central protagonist, Ronnie, who also is gay and has the public image of
being an out-of-date beauty queen. After being taken advantage of, ripped off, and played
with by a heterosexual former lover, the main character has internal conflicts and
contemplates suicide. The fact that he had to knock on doors and offer a job as a helpless gay
man with his sexuality exploited was the final straw that caused him to sink into suicidal
tendencies. He also intended to end his life in the initial half of the narrative because he
feared death squads would shoot him since he used drugs.

Ronnie intends to kill himself before the death squad shoots him down, so it allows
him to die comfortably and in the manner that he would like. He did not want to face such an
unpleasant demise, so he was prepared to risk everything for the competition. He remained
determined to carry out his plans, even claiming that "they would have to race him down to
that stage."

The armor represented defeat. In other words, the same armor that connected Biboy
and Ronnie closer together is what drove Ronnie to lose his dear friend. When Ronnie
initially saw the assailant yanking Biboy violently out of his seat, he immediately acted to
rescue his friend. However, he was prevented by the armor catching on his dress sleeve and
forcing him to remain still and miss his opportunity. The story's conclusion marks a
significant pivotal moment in Ronnie's life since it inspires him to take action after nearly
giving up on himself and his life.