The Chaos They Carried
“The Things They Carried” was written by Tim O’Brien and takes place in and around the small village of Than Khe during the Vietnam War. Tim O’Brien is an American author who writes about his personal experiences guiding his readers through the horror of the war and the extreme situations that cause soldiers to commit unspeakable acts. His writing style is unique because he creates an explicit distinction between fact and fiction. The story is told in third person omniscient with O’Brien switching back and forth from a narrator describing what the soldiers carried to the perspective of Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. This point of view is very important to the story because it compares the physical burdens of the soldiers …show more content…
Cross is having between Love and War. Lt. Cross separates himself from the men to maintain authority. While he separates himself he daydreams about Martha. He carries her picture and letters and a pebble for good luck. She is not his girlfriend but he uses her to maintain a link to love and life back home. These distractions prevent him from leading his men properly. Consequently, Ted Lavender is killed while Lt. Cross is fantasizing about Martha. That was the turning point for Lt. Cross. After the chopper took Lavender away he led his men into Than Khe and burned the village. “He felt shame. He hated himself. He had loved Martha more than his men.” (O’Brien 609) When he realized that his obligation was not to love but to lead his troops Lt. Cross burned all Martha’s letters and photographs. “There was that new hardness in his stomach. He loved her but he hated her. No more fantasies, he told himself” (O’Brien 609). He thought to himself, “It was very sad the things men carried inside. The things men did or felt they had to do.” O’Brien uses the burning of the village to show how there is no rational way to be a leader in the circumstances he was in. He was upset that Lavender got killed and went crazy taking it out on the poor village. Obviously this wasn’t part of his training and verifies what the central idea of the story is about. Lt. Cross wasn’t being a strong leader when he let his emotions take control of
“The Things They Carried” was written by Tim O’Brien and takes place in and around the small village of Than Khe during the Vietnam War. Tim O’Brien is an American author who writes about his personal experiences guiding his readers through the horror of the war and the extreme situations that cause soldiers to commit unspeakable acts. His writing style is unique because he creates an explicit distinction between fact and fiction. The story is told in third person omniscient with O’Brien switching back and forth from a narrator describing what the soldiers carried to the perspective of Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. This point of view is very important to the story because it compares the physical burdens of the soldiers …show more content…
Cross is having between Love and War. Lt. Cross separates himself from the men to maintain authority. While he separates himself he daydreams about Martha. He carries her picture and letters and a pebble for good luck. She is not his girlfriend but he uses her to maintain a link to love and life back home. These distractions prevent him from leading his men properly. Consequently, Ted Lavender is killed while Lt. Cross is fantasizing about Martha. That was the turning point for Lt. Cross. After the chopper took Lavender away he led his men into Than Khe and burned the village. “He felt shame. He hated himself. He had loved Martha more than his men.” (O’Brien 609) When he realized that his obligation was not to love but to lead his troops Lt. Cross burned all Martha’s letters and photographs. “There was that new hardness in his stomach. He loved her but he hated her. No more fantasies, he told himself” (O’Brien 609). He thought to himself, “It was very sad the things men carried inside. The things men did or felt they had to do.” O’Brien uses the burning of the village to show how there is no rational way to be a leader in the circumstances he was in. He was upset that Lavender got killed and went crazy taking it out on the poor village. Obviously this wasn’t part of his training and verifies what the central idea of the story is about. Lt. Cross wasn’t being a strong leader when he let his emotions take control of