War is stressful, it is traumatic, but at the same time fun and a bonding experience. In the novel The Things They Carried, the writer tells us about the memories of camaraderie between a platoon of young soldiers. “Rat Kiley made up a rhyme that caught on, and we’d all be chanting it together: step out of line, hit a mine; follow the dink, you’re in the pink” (32). Something as catchy as a song is remembered forever. Though, the ugly side of any war can have its lasting effects. Talking to someone one minute and the next, they are dead. Many have argued that war can create a bond of lifetime memories, but I plan to argue that those same memories can hunt them for a lifetime.
In the chapter “Love”, Tim O’Brien rekindle with his former platoon leader Jimmy Cross. Nearly twenty years after their time in Vietnam, the two soldiers are still in contact with each other. They spent a day looking at old …show more content…
For years he has been hunted by Lavender’s death, blaming himself as the cause. To Cross, if he didn’t spend so much time daydreaming about Martha, Lavender would still be alive. Out of anger he burned all the letters and picture Martha sent during the war. Cross is completely broken, one of his soldiers died by his negligence. He is so broken about the death of Lavender; he can’t look at a picture of him. “At one point, I remember, we paused over a snapshot of Ted Lavender, and after a while Jimmy rubbed his eyes and said he’d never forgiven himself for Lavender’s death” (26). This guilt is hunting him inside, to the point where he says it will always be with him. Out of everything that Cross did or saw in Vietnam, Lavender’s death dramatically changed his memories of the war. Even though, there were others in his platoon that died. It is possible that in his alone time, he is replaying the horrible scene in his head. With all the great memories of cohesiveness, none matters more than one traumatic
In the chapter “Love”, Tim O’Brien rekindle with his former platoon leader Jimmy Cross. Nearly twenty years after their time in Vietnam, the two soldiers are still in contact with each other. They spent a day looking at old …show more content…
For years he has been hunted by Lavender’s death, blaming himself as the cause. To Cross, if he didn’t spend so much time daydreaming about Martha, Lavender would still be alive. Out of anger he burned all the letters and picture Martha sent during the war. Cross is completely broken, one of his soldiers died by his negligence. He is so broken about the death of Lavender; he can’t look at a picture of him. “At one point, I remember, we paused over a snapshot of Ted Lavender, and after a while Jimmy rubbed his eyes and said he’d never forgiven himself for Lavender’s death” (26). This guilt is hunting him inside, to the point where he says it will always be with him. Out of everything that Cross did or saw in Vietnam, Lavender’s death dramatically changed his memories of the war. Even though, there were others in his platoon that died. It is possible that in his alone time, he is replaying the horrible scene in his head. With all the great memories of cohesiveness, none matters more than one traumatic