Composition II Essay Outline
“The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, is short story is about the soldiers during The Vietnam war and their struggles to maintain their lives. The author talks about how that their mental burdens they carry outweigh the physical burdens that those in war must carry. (O’Brien 1-12). In the story the narrator states, "They carried all the emotional baggage of men who might die. Grief, terror, love, longing--these were intangibles, but the intangibles had their own mass and specific gravity, they had tangible weight" (O’Brien 10). The soldiers escape the reality of war through their use of drugs, humorous language, personal items they carry, and fantasies.
The soldiers escape the reality of war through their …show more content…
For example, Jimmy Cross who is the leader of the soldiers, “He had difficulty keeping his attention on the war. On occasion he would yell at his men to spread out the column, to keep their eyes open, but then he would slip away into daydreams, just pretending, walking barefoot along the Jersey shore, with Martha, carrying nothing” (O’Brien). Throughout the story the reader can see Jimmy escape from the reality of war though his fantasies about Martha to the extent that it distracts him from the war. The narrator states, “They imagined the quick, sweet pain, then the evacuation to Japan, then a hospital with warm beds and cute geisha nurses” (O’Brien 10). The soldiers fantasize themselves being wounded so they escape from this reality of war. Finally, the narrator states, “And they dreamed of freedom birds…they were carried away by jumbo jets. They felt the rush of takeoff. Gone! They were flying. The weights fell off; there was nothing to bear. They laughed and held on tight, feeling the cold slap of wind and altitude, soaring, thinking It's over, I'm gone! they screamed. I'm sorry but I'm gone! (O’Brien 10). The soldiers dreamed that finally the war is over, and they are heading back home carrying noting, and apologizing for dead soldiers they left behind. These fantasies help the soldiers to escape way from the reality of
“The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, is short story is about the soldiers during The Vietnam war and their struggles to maintain their lives. The author talks about how that their mental burdens they carry outweigh the physical burdens that those in war must carry. (O’Brien 1-12). In the story the narrator states, "They carried all the emotional baggage of men who might die. Grief, terror, love, longing--these were intangibles, but the intangibles had their own mass and specific gravity, they had tangible weight" (O’Brien 10). The soldiers escape the reality of war through their use of drugs, humorous language, personal items they carry, and fantasies.
The soldiers escape the reality of war through their …show more content…
For example, Jimmy Cross who is the leader of the soldiers, “He had difficulty keeping his attention on the war. On occasion he would yell at his men to spread out the column, to keep their eyes open, but then he would slip away into daydreams, just pretending, walking barefoot along the Jersey shore, with Martha, carrying nothing” (O’Brien). Throughout the story the reader can see Jimmy escape from the reality of war though his fantasies about Martha to the extent that it distracts him from the war. The narrator states, “They imagined the quick, sweet pain, then the evacuation to Japan, then a hospital with warm beds and cute geisha nurses” (O’Brien 10). The soldiers fantasize themselves being wounded so they escape from this reality of war. Finally, the narrator states, “And they dreamed of freedom birds…they were carried away by jumbo jets. They felt the rush of takeoff. Gone! They were flying. The weights fell off; there was nothing to bear. They laughed and held on tight, feeling the cold slap of wind and altitude, soaring, thinking It's over, I'm gone! they screamed. I'm sorry but I'm gone! (O’Brien 10). The soldiers dreamed that finally the war is over, and they are heading back home carrying noting, and apologizing for dead soldiers they left behind. These fantasies help the soldiers to escape way from the reality of