The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien Essay

war were, Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, and Francis Ford Coppola’s movie Apocalypse Now. Out of the numerous truths of war that were identified in all three of these works, two truths were chosen to be presented. Those two truths that are seen frequently throughout the novel are war is chaotic and it changes people. The first truth seen throughout all three works is war is chaotic. In the novel, The Things They Carried, this particular truth is seen when…

lips. It might sound something like, “You aren't good enough” or “It was all your fault”. This fear can consume someone especially when it is driven by self hatred, guilt or the need for power. In the novels, “Things Fall Apart” and “Things They Carried” the characters, Okonkwo, Tim O’Brien and Norman Bowker demonstrate the theme of fear through their exile and suicide. Okonkwo’s whole life is fueled by his fear of being like his lazy and shameful father. Okonkwo overcompensated by working…

remained in despair (Across the Universe). According to Tim O'Brien many soldiers did not fear death. Instead, death was expected and imagined during the day and darkest nights. Soldiers were desperate to leave the country. Many tried suicide attempts in order to escape the living hell in Vietnam. Like Max, soldiers just pulled the trigger aguishly in different directions. The people were invisible, but Sanders from "The Things They Carried" described the enemy presence as a "hum", a hum that…

By carrying the pebble of Martha around, Jimmy Cross creates a false hope of them being together, knowingly distracting him from his duties as leader of his platoon. Not only did Lieutenant Cross carry a pebble, he also had a picture of her in the bottom of his knapsack, to keep him mentally grounded. By having her presence on him, he is able to imaginatively drift off into thought where they can be together back in New Jersey. While being distracted by the pebble, one of his platoon mates, Ted…

exists that all women are crazy; it’s only a question of degree,” W. C. Fields once said. Well what’s the highest degree? Are women really crazy, or do they just change? In the chapter “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” in the book The Things They Carried, author Tim O’Brien lets us answer these questions ourselves. The chapter is a sweet one, we think in the beginning. It’s about a young soldier flying his sweetheart out to the war in Vietnam for a visit, since he can’t visit her. She is young,…

During the Vietnam War, an unfortunate 58,220 American casualties were reported by the U.S. government (Vietnam War U.S. Military Fatal chart 1). In The Things We Carried, Tim O’Brien weaves a tale about a unit of men who hope to avoid becoming just another one of the numbers. The story, which is centered around First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, takes place near the village of Than Khe during the Vietnam War. At this time in life, Jimmy is struggling with what he interprets as affection to and from…

The Vietnam War, a war with no point and one that cost both sides dearly. This war wasn’t your simple war where you would fight for territory, no, it was a war of attrition to see how many of the enemy you could kill before they gave in. The Americans didn’t know what they were going to be up against going into the war, nor did they know how dearly it would cost them. What was even worse was that most of the troops fighting in the Vietnam war had no idea what they were fighting to achieve other…

The door is locked. The mother knocks twice, but there is no answer. She knocks four more times, each rap on the wood with her manicured nails more intense than the last; the sinking feeling in her stomach deepens. Knocking turns to banging, banging to screaming, and screaming to destruction as the mother breaks down the door. Her son lies on the floor, white capsules surrounding his cold body. The rest is a blur. In the following years she does not sleep at night, guilt haunting her as a ghost…

Traumatic Stress Disorder is “a psychiatric disorder that can occur following the experience or witnessing of a life-threatening experience”. (Department of Veterans Affairs) Tim O’brien and Louise Edrich want to show the psychological and social damaging effects of war as can be seen in Lt. Cross and Henry in "The Things They Carried" and "The Red Convertible". Some of the signs someone who might be suffering from PTSD include flashbacks, nightmares, hypersensitivity among others…

Flake One of the things I reminisce about my high school year experience is the time my iPod got stolen. It was almost the end of my high school junior year when this happened. Not only was it stolen, but I got it back. Well more like I took it back. It took a while to figure out who had stolen my iPod. This small, slick, thin black electronical machine that fitted in my delicate hands had so much sentimental value to me. My older brother had given it to me for my birthday. Having my iPod…