The Sympathizer

by

Viet Thanh Nguyen

Duc Character Analysis

The son of Bon and Linh and the godson of the narrator. The narrator wonders how Bon and Linh, who are described as unattractive people, conceived a child as cute as Duc. He dies, along with his mother, during a missile attack as he and his parents try to escape from South Vietnam by plane after the fall of Saigon.
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Duc Character Timeline in The Sympathizer

The timeline below shows where the character Duc appears in The Sympathizer. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 3
Loyalty vs. Duplicity Theme Icon
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
...his elbow, dragging him with one hand, while holding Linh with the other. Linh carries Duc, who’s screaming. (full context)
Loyalty vs. Duplicity Theme Icon
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
The General sets foot on the ramp. The narrator pauses to let Linh and Duc pass. When he turns, he sees that they’re no longer behind him. The loadmaster shouts... (full context)
Loyalty vs. Duplicity Theme Icon
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
...reaches the ramp, and the General catches her. Bon is running alongside the narrator, holding Duc. The narrator shoves Bon toward the ramp and the loadmaster seizes him by the collar.... (full context)
Chapter 4
Loyalty vs. Duplicity Theme Icon
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
The plane lands in Guam, where a green ambulance arrives to take the bodies of Duc and Linh. The refugees are taken to Camp Asan and, thanks to the General, the... (full context)
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
The next day, they bury Linh and Duc. Bon wears a white scarf of mourning around his head, a rag ripped from his... (full context)
Loyalty vs. Duplicity Theme Icon
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
...Man directly. He talks about Bon’s inner torment and his recent losses of Linh and Duc. Bon might have starved to death, he says, if the narrator didn’t drag him from... (full context)
Chapter 6
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
...he didn’t get revenge. He didn’t get over his feeling of betraying his father until Duc was born. His sense of wonder over his son made Bon think that his father... (full context)
Chapter 14
Loyalty vs. Duplicity Theme Icon
Moral Ambivalence and Purpose Theme Icon
...his wife and child, tears stream down his cheeks. He tells her that Linh and Duc are dead. Lana embraces him while the narrator focuses on her with his lust, determined... (full context)