The narrative of the scenario invented by Paul Berlin represents his struggle to follow Cacciato or stay to do his duty. At one point in the imaginary trip to Paris, “Paul Berlin's motivations, shapeless as water, coursed through his imagination: a briny, soggy pressure weighing him down like gravity, layers of inclination pressing him deeper and deeper. His brain was haywire. Things were out of control. Gone haywire. You could run, but you couldn't escape the consequences of running” (O'Brien 226). The simile comparing his motivations to water shows that while Berlin realizes that there is a lack of purpose in the war, he has not yet accepted the lack of purpose like Cacciato did. By comparing Berlin's internal conflict to the “curves,” O'Brien shows the high level of moral ambiguity that war brings with it: Berlin is unable to decide what is right. However, at the end of the novel, Paul Berlin comes to a conclusion. In an imagined scenario with Sarkin Aung Wan, Berlin says: “More than any positive sense of obligation, I confess that what dominates is the terror of abandoning everything I hold dear. I'm afraid to run away. I am afraid of exile. I fear what those I love might think of me. I fear the loss of their respect. I fear the loss of my reputation” (O'Brien 320). The anaphora – “I am afraid” and “I am afraid” – highlights Berlin's desire to maintain honor. This view differs drastically from Cacciato's, as Berlin chooses to maintain honor over purpose, while Cacciato accepts purposelessness and leaves. O'Brien thus shows how in war the only reason to fight is reputation, honor. When Berlin reflects on his imaginary journey, he says that “with courage it could have been like this