Essay 4: “The Things They Carried”
People naturally carry items that they need as we go through the day. On the other hand, ever person carries around an emotional burden that goes with them everywhere they go. In "The Things They Carried" author Tom O’Brien reveals what it was like for US soldiers to endure carrying large amounts of essential items and emotional burdens during the Vietnam war. The narrator says, "The things they carried were largely determined by necessity," as he tells the story of Lieutenant Jimmy Cross (151). As the story goes on Jimmy describes all of the physical and psychological burdens that he and his soldiers carried in and afer the turmoil of war. In the beginning of the story Jimmy Cross describes the physical items he and his men carried with them in Vietnam. In order to survive, the soldiers brought weapons, ammunition, canteens, lighters, and other necessities. Cross describes how heavy these …show more content…
The letters and photos that Jimmy kept were a constant reminder that Martha did not love him no matter how much he imagined it. Jimmy knew “More than anything, he wanted Martha to love him as he loved her, but the letters were mostly chatty, elusive on the matter of love,” (151). Cross also becomes overwhelmed with guilt when another soldier in his platoon named Ted Lavender, who had been described as scared and fearful, was shot and killed while day dreaming of Martha. When Lavender was shot the entire platoon was shocked back into the harsh reality of the pain, fear, and death that came with war. All of the men in the story saw people die right before their eyes so it was as if “They all carried ghost” (156). The soldiers all had one thing in common, “They carried the weight of a memory” (159). As the war went on the soldiers carried the added the weight of depression and memories of dead friends to their heavy
People naturally carry items that they need as we go through the day. On the other hand, ever person carries around an emotional burden that goes with them everywhere they go. In "The Things They Carried" author Tom O’Brien reveals what it was like for US soldiers to endure carrying large amounts of essential items and emotional burdens during the Vietnam war. The narrator says, "The things they carried were largely determined by necessity," as he tells the story of Lieutenant Jimmy Cross (151). As the story goes on Jimmy describes all of the physical and psychological burdens that he and his soldiers carried in and afer the turmoil of war. In the beginning of the story Jimmy Cross describes the physical items he and his men carried with them in Vietnam. In order to survive, the soldiers brought weapons, ammunition, canteens, lighters, and other necessities. Cross describes how heavy these …show more content…
The letters and photos that Jimmy kept were a constant reminder that Martha did not love him no matter how much he imagined it. Jimmy knew “More than anything, he wanted Martha to love him as he loved her, but the letters were mostly chatty, elusive on the matter of love,” (151). Cross also becomes overwhelmed with guilt when another soldier in his platoon named Ted Lavender, who had been described as scared and fearful, was shot and killed while day dreaming of Martha. When Lavender was shot the entire platoon was shocked back into the harsh reality of the pain, fear, and death that came with war. All of the men in the story saw people die right before their eyes so it was as if “They all carried ghost” (156). The soldiers all had one thing in common, “They carried the weight of a memory” (159). As the war went on the soldiers carried the added the weight of depression and memories of dead friends to their heavy