the things they carried by tim o'brien essay

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The things they carried essay topics and outline examples, essay title 1: truth and fiction in "the things they carried".

Thesis Statement: Tim O'Brien blurs the lines between truth and fiction in "The Things They Carried" to convey the emotional and psychological truths of war experiences, demonstrating the power of storytelling as a coping mechanism.

• Introduction
• The Nature of Truth in Storytelling
• Examples of Fictional Elements in the Book
• The Emotional and Psychological Impact on Characters
• How Storytelling Helps Characters Cope

Essay Title 2: The Weight of Emotional Baggage in "The Things They Carried"

Thesis Statement: "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien explores the heavy burden of emotional baggage carried by soldiers during the Vietnam War, emphasizing that these intangible loads can be just as impactful as physical ones.

• The Literal and Symbolic Items Carried by Soldiers
• Depictions of Emotional Baggage in the Stories
• The Interplay Between Physical and Emotional Loads
• The Long-Term Effects on Soldiers' Lives

Essay Title 3: Morality and Ethical Dilemmas in "The Things They Carried"

Thesis Statement: Tim O'Brien raises questions about morality and ethical dilemmas faced by soldiers in "The Things They Carried," illustrating the complex choices and consequences that war imposes on individuals.

• Situations of Moral Complexity in the Stories
• Character Reactions to Ethical Dilemmas
• Exploring the Themes of Guilt and Responsibility
• The Broader Commentary on the Vietnam War

Metaphors in "The Things They Carried"

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The Things They Carried Rhetorical Analysis

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Tim O’brien's Use of Figurative Language to Portray The Theme of Death in The Things They Carried

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An Insight into The Emotions of War in The Things They Carried

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March 28, 1990, Tim O'Brien

Collection of interconnected short stories

Historical Fiction

Norman Bowker, Rat Kiley, Henry Dobbins, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, Tim O'Brien

The narrative unfolds through series of interconnected short stories that depict a platoon of American soldiers' experiences during the Vietnam War, memories, and the items they carry with them. The protagonist, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, grapples with his responsibilities as a leader and his longing for a girl back home. He carries letters and photographs from her, as well as guilt and regret for his preoccupation with her rather than the safety of his men. Other soldiers in the platoon carry personal belongings that hold sentimental value or serve as a form of escapism from the harsh reality of war. Each item carries its own significance, reflecting the unique stories and personalities of the soldiers. The novel explores the psychological impact of war on the soldiers, delving into themes of fear, trauma, loss, and the blurred boundaries between truth and fiction. O'Brien masterfully blurs the line between fact and fiction, emphasizing the power of storytelling and memory as a means of understanding and coping with the horrors of war. The novel serves as a powerful testament to the resilience, camaraderie, and sacrifice of those who have served in armed conflicts, inviting readers to reflect on the enduring impact of war on individuals and society as a whole.

The setting of "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien is primarily during the Vietnam War, specifically focusing on the experiences of American soldiers deployed in Vietnam. The novel takes readers into the harsh and unforgiving environment of the war, transporting them to the jungles, rice paddies, and villages of Vietnam. The story unfolds in various locations, including the dense forests of Quang Ngai Province, the mountains near the border with Laos, and the riverside villages where the soldiers engage in combat and interact with the local Vietnamese population. O'Brien vividly describes the physical landscape, capturing the oppressive heat, the dense vegetation, and the constant sense of danger that permeates the air. In addition to the physical setting, the novel also explores the soldiers' mental and emotional landscapes. O'Brien delves into the interior worlds of the characters, portraying the weight of their experiences, the moral dilemmas they face, and the emotional burdens they carry. The setting becomes a reflection of the soldiers' internal struggles and serves as a backdrop for their personal transformations and battles with their own fears and demons. The temporal setting of the novel spans several years, from the early stages of the war to its aftermath. The narrative shifts back and forth in time, capturing the soldiers' memories, reflections, and the lasting impact of the war on their lives. O'Brien seamlessly weaves together past and present, blurring the boundaries of time and highlighting the enduring psychological and emotional effects of war.

The themes in "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien serve as a lens through which the characters' stories are told, offering insights into the complexities of war, memory, storytelling, and the weight of personal burdens. One of the central themes of the novel is the concept of storytelling and its power to shape and give meaning to our lives. O'Brien delves into the nature of truth and fiction, blurring the boundaries between fact and imagination. The characters use storytelling as a way to cope with the horrors of war, to remember their fallen comrades, and to make sense of their own experiences. This theme highlights the role of narrative in shaping our understanding of the world and the ways in which stories can serve as a form of catharsis and healing. Another significant theme explored in the book is the weight of personal burdens and the psychological toll of war. The characters in "The Things They Carried" carry physical objects that symbolize their emotional and psychological burdens, such as letters, photographs, and personal mementos. These tangible items serve as a metaphor for the intangible burdens they carry, including guilt, fear, and trauma. O'Brien explores the ways in which these burdens shape the characters' identities and influence their actions, highlighting the heavy price they pay for their service. Memory and its unreliability is another prominent theme in the novel. O'Brien examines how memories of war can be fragmented, distorted, and selectively recalled, blurring the line between reality and perception. The characters grapple with the weight of their memories, often haunted by the past and struggling to reconcile their experiences with their present lives. This theme underscores the enduring impact of war on the human psyche and the challenges of preserving and making sense of personal histories. Additionally, "The Things They Carried" delves into the themes of camaraderie, sacrifice, and the moral complexities of war. The bonds formed among the soldiers become a source of strength and support amidst the chaos and brutality of combat. The novel explores the sacrifices made by individuals for the collective good, as well as the ethical dilemmas they face in navigating the blurred lines between right and wrong in the midst of war.

Symbolism plays a significant role in the novel, allowing O'Brien to convey complex ideas and emotions through objects and events. For example, the weighty physical objects that the soldiers carry, such as Lieutenant Cross's letters from Martha, symbolize the burden of their emotional and psychological baggage. The pebble that Lieutenant Cross carries represents his longing for love and connection amidst the harsh reality of war. These symbols enrich the story , highlighting the themes of burdens, longing, and the conflict between love and duty. Imagery is skillfully employed throughout the book, creating vivid and sensory experiences for the reader. O'Brien's descriptions of the Vietnam War landscape, the soldiers' surroundings, and the visceral details of combat immerse the reader in the characters' experiences. Through powerful imagery, the author captures the sights, sounds, and smells of war, enhancing the emotional impact of the narrative. Irony is used to illuminate the contradictions and complexities of war. O'Brien employs situational irony to underscore the absurdities of war, such as the ironic death of Ted Lavender, who carries tranquilizers but is killed in a moment of vulnerability. Verbal irony is also present in the soldiers' dark humor and sarcastic remarks, revealing their coping mechanisms in the face of unimaginable circumstances. Metafiction, a prominent literary device in the novel, blurs the line between fiction and reality. O'Brien acknowledges the act of storytelling and explores the nature of truth, memory, and the power of narrative. For instance, O'Brien admits to fictionalizing certain elements of the story, blurring the boundaries between fact and imagination. This metafictional aspect challenges the reader's perception of truth and invites contemplation on the nature of storytelling and the role of fiction in representing the complexities of war. Other literary devices employed in the novel include repetition, foreshadowing, and paradox. Repetition is used to emphasize certain ideas and motifs, such as the repetition of the phrase "They carried" to highlight the soldiers' burdens. Foreshadowing hints at the characters' fates and adds tension to the narrative, while paradox presents the contradictions and ambiguities of war, such as the notion of killing for the sake of preserving life.

"The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien has been adapted and represented in various forms of media, including film, theater, and music. These adaptations aim to capture the essence of the novel and bring its powerful themes and stories to a wider audience. One notable adaptation is the theatrical production of "The Things They Carried," which premiered in 2018. Adapted by Jim Stowell and directed by Sarah Diener, the play incorporates elements of storytelling, music, and multimedia to recreate the experiences of the soldiers in Vietnam. It utilizes the power of live performance to evoke the emotional intensity and psychological impact of war, engaging audiences in a visceral and immersive manner. Another notable representation of "The Things They Carried" is the 1990 short film adaptation directed by Peter Werner. This film, also titled "The Things They Carried," offers a visual interpretation of select stories from the book, bringing the characters and events to life on screen. Through the medium of film, the adaptation captures the visual imagery and the emotional depth of O'Brien's writing, allowing viewers to witness the harrowing realities of war. In addition to these direct adaptations, the influence of "The Things They Carried" can be seen in various songs, music videos, and other artistic expressions. Artists have drawn inspiration from the themes and stories of the novel to create their own works that reflect the experiences of soldiers in war. For example, Bruce Springsteen's song "The Wall" and Pearl Jam's song "I Am Mine" touch upon similar themes of memory, loss, and the weight of war that resonate with O'Brien's novel.

"The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien has had a significant influence on literature, academia, and the public's understanding of war and its impact on soldiers. This powerful collection of interconnected short stories has left an indelible mark on readers and has contributed to important conversations about memory, truth, storytelling, and the human experience in times of conflict. One notable influence of "The Things They Carried" is its contribution to the genre of war literature. O'Brien's innovative blend of fact and fiction, his exploration of the subjective nature of truth, and his vivid portrayal of the psychological and emotional burdens carried by soldiers have inspired subsequent authors to tackle similar themes. The book's honest depiction of war's complexities and its emphasis on the human cost of conflict have shaped and influenced subsequent works of literature exploring the realities of war. Moreover, "The Things They Carried" has had a profound impact on the field of literary criticism and academia. Scholars and researchers have extensively studied O'Brien's storytelling techniques, narrative structure, and thematic depth. The book's exploration of memory, trauma, and the power of storytelling has provided rich material for analysis and has influenced the field of narrative theory. Beyond the literary sphere, "The Things They Carried" has resonated with a wide range of readers, including veterans, students, and the general public. Its poignant portrayal of the complexities of war and its lasting effects on individuals has prompted discussions on topics such as moral ambiguity, the dehumanizing nature of conflict, and the importance of empathy and understanding. The influence of "The Things They Carried" extends beyond literature and academia into popular culture. The book has been referenced in songs, films, and other forms of media, further cementing its status as a cultural touchstone. Its enduring relevance and impact demonstrate the power of storytelling to illuminate the human condition and provoke meaningful reflection on the consequences of war.

1. "The Things They Carried" has received widespread critical acclaim since its publication. It was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1991 and won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction in the same year. 2. Over the years, "The Things They Carried" has remained a staple in literature courses and reading lists across the United States. It is frequently taught in high schools and universities, and its impact on readers has endured. The book's exploration of war, memory, and the power of storytelling continues to resonate with new generations, ensuring its place as a significant work of American literature. 3. In 2018, "The Things They Carried" was adapted into a feature film directed by Rupert Sanders. The movie, starring Tom Hardy and Tye Sheridan, aimed to bring O'Brien's powerful storytelling to the big screen. While the adaptation faced some challenges and has not been widely released, it is a testament to the enduring appeal and cinematic potential of the book's themes and narratives.

"The Things They Carried" is an essential work to write an essay about due to its profound exploration of the human experience in times of war. Through its vivid storytelling and introspective narratives, the book delves into the complexities of the Vietnam War, the weight of personal burdens, the power of memory, and the impact of storytelling itself. By examining the novel, students can gain a deeper understanding of the psychological and emotional toll of war on soldiers, the ethical dilemmas they face, and the enduring effects on their lives. The book raises thought-provoking questions about the nature of truth, the unreliability of memory, and the ways in which storytelling can shape our perceptions and heal our wounds. Moreover, "The Things They Carried" serves as a powerful example of how literature can humanize and give voice to the experiences of those who have served in conflict zones. It provides a platform for discussion on war literature, trauma, empathy, and the power of narrative. Ultimately, studying and analyzing this work allows students to engage with important social, historical, and psychological themes, fostering critical thinking and empathy towards those impacted by war.

"They carried the soldier’s greatest fear, which was the fear of blushing. Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to. It was what had brought them to the war in the first place, nothing positive, no dreams of glory or honor, just to avoid the blush of dishonor. They died so as not to die of embarrassment." "He was a slim, dead, almost dainty young man of about twenty. He lay with one leg bent beneath him, his jaw in his throat, his face neither expressive nor inexpressive. One eye was shut. The other was a star-shaped hole." "But in a story, which is a kind of dreaming, the dead sometimes smile and sit up and return to the world" "I survived, but it's not a happy ending."

1. Climo, J. (2005). Truth and fiction in Tim O'Brien's If I Die in a Combat Zone, Box Me Up and Ship Me Home and The Things They Carried. Modern Fiction Studies, 51(1), 186-208. 2. Friedman, L. (2013). ‘Dancing the Soul Back Home’: Trauma, storytelling, and truth in Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried. War, Literature & the Arts: An International Journal of the Humanities, 25(1/2), 273-296. 3. Heberle, R. (2017). War, memory, and the inescapability of fiction in Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried. College Literature, 44(2), 225-245. 4. Herzog, T. (2002). Memory, history, and trauma in Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried. Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction, 43(3), 259-277. 5. Kaplan, S. (2016). Postmodernism, metafiction, and Tim O'Brien's Vietnam War stories. In The Philosophy of War Films (pp. 135-154). University Press of Kentucky. 6. Kaplan, S. (2017). The Things They Carried: Tim O'Brien's personal debt to Hemingway. The Hemingway Review, 36(1), 71-85. 7. McWilliams, J. (2015). Intimations of mortality: Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried and In the Lake of the Woods. In The Cambridge Companion to the Literature of the Vietnam War (pp. 145-160). Cambridge University Press. 8. O’Brien, T. (1990). The things they carried. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 9. Stenberg, P. (2009). Lyric narrative and the war text: Tim O'Brien's "Speaking of Courage" and "In the Field" as poetic rewritings of The Things They Carried. Contemporary Literature, 50(3), 497-527. 10. Wood, M. (2000). Refiguring the Vietnam veteran: (Dis) locating subjectivity in Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried. Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction, 41(2), 107-121.

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Literary Theory and Criticism

Home › Literature › Analysis of Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried

Analysis of Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried

By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on May 26, 2021

In the short story cycle The Things They Carried (1990), Tim O’Brien cemented his reputation as one of the most powerful chroniclers of the Vietnam War, joining the conversation alongside Philip Caputo ( A Rumor of War ), Michael Herr ( Dispatches ), David Halberstam ( The Best and the Brightest ), and the poet Bruce Weigl ( Song of Napalm ), among others. Comprising 22 pieces—some little more than vignettes, others more “traditional” stories—the collection details the experiences of the soldier Tim O’Brien, who returns to his native Minnesota after a tour of duty in Vietnam. In his subsequent role as author, O’Brien records his recollections in a false memoir of sorts as a way of reconstructing the war’s elusive “truth.” O’Brien’s goal in The Things They Carried, he tells Michael Coffey, “was to write something utterly convincing but without any rules as to what’s real and what’s made up. I forced myself to try to invent a new form. I had never invented form before” (60).

“In the Field” follows Lieutenant Jimmy Cross and his platoon of 17 remaining men as they search a Vietnamese muck field for Kiowa, a lost comrade. Cross, who figures prominently in several of the book’s pieces—including the eponymous “The Things They Carried,” the collection’s most anthologized story—feels tremendous guilt over Kiowa’s death, not the least because the previous evening, just before an ambush, Cross refused to disobey orders and to move his men to higher, and therefore safer, ground. Kiowa, buried when a fellow soldier inadvertently gave away the platoon’s position to the enemy, was a popular soldier. Out of respect for their fallen comrade, the men dutifully wade through waist-deep sewage searching for his remains; they sustain themselves with a morbid sense of humor, making light of the situation in order to quell their fear of random, sudden death at the hands of a faceless enemy. Cross quickly realizes that he is ill suited for the military, having been shipped to Vietnam after joining the officer training corps in college only to be with friends and to collect a few college credits. “[Cross] did not care one way or the other about the war,” O’Brien intones, “and he had no desire to command, and even after all these months in the bush, all the days and nights, even then he did not know enough to keep his men out of a shit field” (168).

Tim O’Brien/The Austin Chronicle

War is a great leveler in O’Brien’s fiction. In the field where Cross and his men search for Kiowa, “The filth seemed to erase identities, transforming the men into identical copies of a single soldier, which was exactly how Jimmy Cross had been trained to treat them, as interchangeable units of command” (163). The young lieutenant, however, suspends his humanity only with great difficulty. Ruminating on Kiowa’s death, he imagines writing a letter to the soldier’s father before deciding that “no apologies were necessary, because in fact it was one of those freak things, and the war was full of freaks, and nothing could ever change it anyway” (176). Cross’s rationalization may absolve him (at least in part) of his guilt over Kiowa’s death, though it is also a tacit admission of his lack of control over the war’s daily life-and-death struggles. Cross’s desire to organize the details of Kiowa’s death in his own mind is an extension of O’Brien’s attempt in The Things They Carried to construct a coherent narrative that finds the essential truth of war (a notion that the author confirms in the ironically titled “How to Tell a True War Story” which acts as an interpretive key to his recollections).

Upon the discovery of Kiowa’s body, the men properly mourn the loss of their fellow soldier, though “they also felt a kind of giddiness, a secret joy, because they were alive, and because even the rain was preferable to being sucked under a shit field, and because it was all a matter of luck and happenstance” (175). Cross, yearning for war’s end, imagines himself on a golf course in his New Jersey hometown, free of the burden of leading men to their deaths. O’Brien examines the onus of responsibility often, and in the related story “Field Trip,” which details the author’s return to Vietnam two decades later to the field where Kiowa died, O’Brien finds a world barely recognizable as the one he left behind. “The field remains, but in a form much different from what O’Brien remembers, smaller now, and full of light,” Patrick A. Smith writes of O’Brien’s visit. “The air is soundless, the ghosts are missing, and the farmers who now tend the field go back to work after stealing a curious glance in his direction. The war is absent, except in O’Brien’s memory” (107). But it is memory, O’Brien makes clear, that supersedes experience and haunts soldiers long after the shooting has stopped.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Coffey, Michael. “Tim O’Brien: Inventing a New Form Helps the Author Talk about War, Memory, and Storytelling.” Publishers Weekly, 16 February 1990, pp. 60–61. O’Brien, Tim. “In the Field.” In The Things They Carried. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1990. Smith, Patrick A. Tim O’Brien: A Critical Companion. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2005.

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• The Things They Carried

Tim O'Brien

• Literature Notes
• Narrative Structure in The Things They Carried
• Book Summary
• About The Things They Carried
• Character List
• Summary and Analysis
• On the Rainy River
• Enemies and Friends
• How to Tell a True War Story
• The Dentist
• Sweetheart of Song Tra Bong
• The Man I Killed and Ambush
• Speaking of Courage
• In the Field
• The Ghost Soldiers
• The Lives of the Dead
• Character Analysis
• Tim O'Brien
• Lt. Jimmy Cross
• Norman Bowker
• Mary Anne Bell
• Henry Dobbins
• Tim O'Brien Biography
• Critical Essays
• The Things They Carried in a Historical Context
• Style and Storytelling in The Things They Carried
• The Things They Carried and Loss of Innocence
• The Things They Carried and Questions of Genre
• Full Glossary for The Things They Carried
• Essay Questions
• Practice Projects
• Cite this Literature Note

Critical Essays Narrative Structure in The Things They Carried

The Things They Carried  is not easily characterized as a novel or autobiography or short story collection. The book is comprised of 22 short pieces that are referential to one another. Though individual pieces can stand alone, and some were published singly or anthologized, the distinct pieces are meant to comprise a whole meditative novel.

One narrative technique that O'Brien uses is repetition. O'Brien frequently retells certain incidents, often adding incremental detail with each telling. One example of this is the scene of Kiowa's death, which, retold five times, is the core of most of the novel's action and the catalyst for most characters' development. Students often overlook the importance of this repetition by mistaking it as redundancy. Instead, the repetition is a stylistic technique O'Brien employs to illuminate the truth of a story by adding and subtracting telling detail. The effect of this for an astute reader is a feeling that simulates "O'Brien's" intense obsession with the stories he tells and retells because they run through his memory almost constantly.

O'Brien's novel is untraditional in a second narrative sense as well, due in part to the non-linear presentation of the novel's action. O'Brien does not maintain temporal continuity; he jumps from the past to the present and then to the distant past and then back to the present. In a way, this constant memory shifting leads the reader down a path of memory similar to O'Brien's. In other words, O'Brien forces an experience of recollections leading to other memories and new insights on his reader, creating an emotional response to the novel in the reader. This path of memory — which is congruent to O'Brien's own — more actively involves the reader in a constant dialogic interplay with the novel. For readers, as for O'Brien, certain events and details recall the details and events of other stories. By using a narrative technique that constantly generates new contexts in which to revisit stories, such as that when O'Brien recalls Linda when contemplating a dead body he sees in Vietnam, he creates new meanings through shifting juxtapositions.

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The Things They Carried

Tim o’brien, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

The Things They Carried is a collection of twenty-two stories chronicling the author, Tim O'Brien's, recollections of his time as a soldier in the Vietnam War. While O'Brien admits in the book to often blurring the line between fact and fiction, the names of the characters in the book are those of real people. Since it is a collection of stories rather than a novel, there is not a traditional narrative arc with a beginning, middle, and end. Yet, the entire collection functions as a self-contained work because it is so loyal to its themes and characters.

"The Things They Carried:" This story introduces the reader to O'Brien's platoon leader, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross . The story travels between Cross' infatuation with a girl named Martha that he's in love with based on a single date in college, the death of the soldier Ted Lavender , and an itemized chronicle of what the men carried at war, from supplies, to tokens of luck, to emotions.

"Love:" Jimmy Cross visits Tim O'Brien long after the war has ended and they swap war stories over a bottle of gin. The topic of Martha comes up, and Cross confesses that he still loves her. He tells the story of how he saw Martha at a college reunion after the war. She had never married. Cross asks O'Brien to write a story about him that makes him appear to be the best platoon leader ever, hoping Martha would read it and find him.

"Spin:" A story of Tim O'Brien's fragmented memories from the war. Mitchell Sanders sends his body lice to his hometown draft board. Norman Bowker and Henry Dobbins play checkers every night. O'Brien's daughter, Kathleen , says he should stop writing so many war stories. O'Brien recalls Kiowa teaching Rat Kiley and Dave Jensen a rain dance. Ted Lavender adopted a puppy that Azar blew up. Kiowa told O'Brien he had no choice but to kill the armed man on the path. O'Brien says he must write stories because that's all that's left when memory is gone.

"On the Rainy River:" Before going to Vietnam, Tim O'Brien decides to dodge the draft, and he drives north to Canada but stops near the border at The Tip Top Lodge, owned by an old man named Elroy Berdahl . O'Brien credits Berdahl with being "the hero of his life." O'Brien spends six days at the Lodge, trying to decide whether or not to flee. Berdahl takes him out on a boat so he's only yards away from Canadian soil. O'Brien feels forced to go to war for fear of embarrassing himself and his family, more than he fears death.

"Enemies:" Dave Jensen and Lee Strunk get in a brutal fight over a stolen jackknife where Jensen breaks Strunk's nose. After Strunk returns from a few days in medical care, Jensen becomes paranoid that Strunk will retaliate by killing him. Jensen isolates himself for a week, and eventually loses it and starts shooting his gun in the air until he's out of ammo. Then he breaks his own nose with a pistol and asks Strunk if they're even. Strunk says they are.

"Friends:" Dave Jensen and Lee Strunk become friends after their fight and start doing everything in pairs. They make a pact and sign it that reads one is obligated to kill the other if one is harmed so badly in battle that they would be wheelchair bound. Later that month, Strunk gets most of his right leg blown off in combat. As the soldiers wait for a medic chopper, Strunk comes in and out of consciousness begging for Jensen not to kill him. Jensen promises he won't. Strunk dies in the chopper, and Jensen appears relieved.

"How to Tell a True War Story:" O'Brien writes that war stories have no moral, they are often not true (at least completely), and if a story is true you can tell by the kinds of questions a story gets after it's told. O'Brien tells the story of Rat Kiley's reaction to Curt Lemon's death as an example, as well as Mitchell Sanders' story about a platoon of soldiers that started having auditory hallucinations. When O'Brien tells the story of Lemon's death, usually an older woman will say it's too sad, and O'Brien resolves he has to keep telling the stories and adding to them to make them truer.

"The Dentist:" Curt Lemon , a soldier that Tim O'Brien didn't particularly because of his hyper-macho personae, is eulogized in a quick story. Lemon enjoyed combat and was known for his dangerous antics, but he was terrified of the Army dentist that all of the soldiers had to see. When the dentist touched him, Lemon fainted. When he came to, he spent the rest of the day in a stupor, cursing himself. In the night, Lemon woke the dentist and forced him to pull out a perfectly healthy tooth.

"Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong:" O'Brien tells a story that Rat Kiley told him from when he was stationed in an isolated area. There was so little action there that one soldier, Mark Fossie , snuck his girlfriend Mary Anne Bell in by helicopter. Things don't go as Fossie planned, though, because Bell becomes infatuated with the war, leaves Fossie, and joins the Green Berets in battle.

"Stockings:" Henry Dobbins , a loveable, gentle-giant, had a peculiar ritual of wrapping his girlfriend's stockings around his neck before dangerous missions. At first Dobbins was made fun of, but then the platoon started to believe in the power of the stockings because Dobbins was never hurt in battle, even when he was standing in open fire and stepped on a mine that didn't go off. When Dobbins' girlfriend breaks up with him, he still wears the stockings and says the magic didn't leave.

"Church:" The platoon uses a pagoda where two monks live as an operations base for a week. The two monks like the soldiers, but they particularly love Henry Dobbins . Dobbins tells Kiowa he might become a monk after the war, but confesses he could never be a minister because he can't answer the hard questions about life and death. Kiowa, who always carries the New Testament, doesn't feel that it's right that they're using a church as a base. Dobbins agrees.

" The Man I Killed :" The story goes back and forth between O'Brien's memories of the corpse of the young, armed man he threw a grenade at on a path outside of My Khe and the invented history O'Brien has created of the dead man as a mathematician, scholar, and terrified soldier. Kiowa keeps insisting that O'Brien quit staring at the body and talk to him.

"Ambush:" O'Brien's daughter, Kathleen , asks him if he's ever killed anyone. He lies and says he hasn't, but then addresses the story to an adult Kathleen and promises to give the truth. He recalls the image of the young man outside of My Khe and how the memory haunts him still, but in his memories the young man keeps walking down the path and survives.

"Style:" A young Vietnamese girl dances in the charred remains of her village. Azar keeps asking why she is dancing. From where her house was, the soldiers find the corpses of the girl's family. She continues to dance. Later, when the soldiers have left the village, Azar dances like the girl in a mocking way. Henry Dobbins picks up Azar and holds him over a well, threatening to drop him if he won't stop and "dance right."

"Speaking of Courage:" Follows Norman Bowker at home after he returns from the war to the Unites States on the Fourth of July. Bowker drives repeatedly around a lake in his hometown, reminiscing about the night Kiowa died. He remembers seeing Kiowa's boot and trying to pull but Kiowa was too stuck so Bowker fled. Bowker has convinced himself he would have won the Silver Star if he had pulled Kiowa out, and that Kiowa would still be alive. Bowker feels like he has no one to talk to, and imagines telling his father that he was a coward. He imagines his father consoling him with the many medals he did win. Bowker wades into the lake and watches the fireworks.

"Notes:" A post-script for the story "Speaking of Courage." O'Brien tells the background of how "Speaking of Courage," came to be when Norman Bowker sent him a seventeen page letter, ultimately asking him to write a story about a man like him who feels he died after the war. O'Brien feels guilty and compelled to oblige, and writes a version of "Speaking of Courage" that he publishes, sends to Bowker, but is not truly proud of. Bowker doesn't react well to the story because it was doctored to fit into O'Brien's novel and lacks the truth of what happened to Kiowa in Vietnam. O'Brien hopes the story will speak to his failure to protect Kiowa and to Bowker's courage.

"In the Field:" Chronicles the search to find Kiowa buried under the muck after enemy mortar rounds killed him. The story is split between Lieutenant Jimmy Cross' guilt fueling his conviction to write Kiowa's father a letter, the young soldier ( O'Brien ) who feels he killed Kiowa by turning on his flashlight in the dark to show him a picture of his girlfriend, and the men of the platoon who eventually pull Kiowa out.

"Good Form:" O'Brien toys with the function of Truth in storytelling, and how there are different kinds of truth in a story, particularly a war story. There is story-truth and happening-truth. He claims he wouldn't be lying if he said he killed the young man outside of My Khe but he also wouldn't be lying if he claimed he did not kill him.

"Field Trip:" O'Brien takes his ten-year-old daughter Kathleen with him to Vietnam. With a translator, they visit the field where Kiowa died. The field looks different than O'Brien remembers. He wades out into the water and buries the pair of Kiowa's moccasins where he believes Kiowa's rucksack was found. His daughter Kathleen asks about the old farmer staring at O'Brien and thinks he looks angry, but O'Brien says that's all over.

"The Ghost Soldiers:" O'Brien recalls the two bullets he caught in Vietnam. Rat Kiley immediately treated the first bullet, while the second nearly killed him because the new medic, Bobby Jorgenson , was in shock while the platoon was under fire. O'Brien wants revenge on Jorgenson, but only Azar will help him try to scare the medic. They try to terrify Jorgensen one night by pretending to be the enemy, but Jorgenson doesn't scare and O'Brien is forced to let go of his grudge when they agree they're even.

"Night Life:" A second-hand account of how Rat Kiley shot his own foot to get out of the line of duty. The platoon had heard rumors of an imminent enemy attack, and only operated by walking at night. Everyone was affected, but Rat Kiley started to lose it. After he shot his foot, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross told the chopper that carried him away it had been an accident.

"The Lives of the Dead:" O'Brien compares his Vietnam wartime experiences with the death of his childhood sweetheart, Linda , who died of a brain tumor when she was nine. Hers was the first dead body O'Brien ever saw. He says that stories keep their subjects alive, and in this way Linda can live forever.

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The Things They Carried : Tim O’Brien’s Vietnam War Novel Endures

Privates First Class Carl Baden (New Orleans, Louisiana) and Arcadio Carrion (Puerto Rico) laying in the mud waiting for artillery to knock out the machine gun bunker that has them pinned down in a tree line at My Tho (April 4, 1968).

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Fifty years ago, many young men like Tim O’Brien , author The Things They Carried —published in 1990—were drafted into the army and later served in what was increasingly becoming an unpopular war. Today, in times of a volunteer army, many aspects of the military have changed. For one thing, women now serve in combat roles, too.

Critics have hailed The Things They Carried as one of the finest examples in American literature of writing about war. O’Brien served in Vietnam from 1969 to 1970, and, in The Things They Carried , wrote a collection of linked stories that reads like a memoir. A character introduced in one story will appear in a later one, and even though they’re all linked in some way, each story can stand on its own. The title story is an overture and creates the world of Vietnam for readers. The story also establishes the physical weight of objects each soldier carries by choice or by regulation. Later in the novel, however, the things they carry are psychological. In the opening story, the repetition of the phrase “the things they carried” becomes haunting, and it unifies the experience for the reader, who begins to feel the weight of objects the soldiers carried.

Each character in the novel’s opening story carries, along with those articles that were SOP (standing operating procedure), personal items that often serve as a talisman or a salve for the grueling psychological effects of battle. Additionally, O’Brien writes, “they carried ghosts.”

In World War II, the average age of an American soldier was the mid-twenties, while that of soldiers in Vietnam was nineteen. The young soldiers in Vietnam were especially susceptible to the psychological pressures of combat.

Drafted in the summer of 1968, O’Brien himself is a character in the novel, acting primarily as narrator but also, significantly, as the principal character in one story. In “ On the Rainy River ,” O’Brien sets off to his home state’s northern border with Canada. There, along the Rainy River’s southern banks in Minnesota, O’Brien contemplates fleeing the draft and slipping into Canada. In an interview , O’Brien has talked about the story and its relation to actual facts. An author “plays with facts,” he says, in order to get to the truth.

O’Brien himself never spent days along the Canadian border, contemplating and seriously considering life as a draft dodger. Instead, he played golf that summer in southern Minnesota, but the anxiety of having to report to his induction base a few weeks later produced a tightness in his chest similar to that felt by the fictional O’Brien, who finally decides not to dodge the draft. “On the Rainy River” raises philosophical questions for students concerning the true meaning of courage.

Students who have read novels set in times of war, such as, among others, The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer (published in 1948) can make useful comparisons and contrasts with The Things They Carried . Mailer’s groundbreaking WW II novel, as does The Things They Carried , presents the reader with a cross section of soldiers serving in war. Readers and critics often note that both Mailer and O’Brien have written with journalistic detail. A comparison of the two authors’ use of the same techniques can help students talk about the various ways novelists can present the experience of war.

In interviews, OBrien speaks of a “stomach feeling” he wants to leave with his readers. He doesn’t sanitize details. Students who may have read Johnny Got His Gun (published in 1939) can discuss the “stomach feeling” they may have had from reading the novel by Dalton Trumbo.

When O’Brien was writing The Things They Carried in the late 1980s, American women were not serving in combat roles, although, as Ken Burns and Lynne Novick’s   documentary The Vietnam War demonstrates, in the war without a front, many women did serve in Vietnam as nurses near combat and at medical bases. Since 2015 women in the military can serve in combat zones.

The story “Sweatheart of the Song Tra Bong” was, O’Brien says, a “heuristic exercise.” By a kind of storyteller’s trial and error, he decided to try to craft a story that interjects a woman (the girlfriend of the medic, Rat Kiley) into the combat experience, first as the traditional girl next door in a pink sweater, who is improbably visiting Kiley in Vietnam, to a night-stalking member of a Green Beret unit. She goes native, echoing, admits O’Brien, The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. Students can consider to what extent O’Brien’s story does or does not still ring true, now that women serve in combat, too, and are also beginning to write about their war experiences, as female veterans discussed  recently in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in a writing  workshop reported on in the Washington Post .

O’Brien’s success in creating for readers an authentic experience of war stems from a variety of techniques and styles, including linked stories, milieu-setting detail, and a cross section of well-drawn characters. The novel can serve either as an introduction to war lit generally or as a useful tool to further build on the writings on war students may have already encountered.

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“The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien: Novel Analysis Essay

Introduction, the uniqueness of the chosen literary work, techniques used by the author, arguments and ideas developed in the story, works cited.

Vietnam War was among the most dramatic, polarizing, and controversial events of the second half of the 20th century for the United States. Many people believed that the war was the representation of America’s greatness and power as a country; on the contrary, many others considered it to be the violation of human rights, pointless waste of national resources (both economic and human ones), and the greatest tragedy of the current generation. These polarizing opinions and debates are still present in the contemporary scholarly literature, political discourses, and ordinary conversations.

However, it is essential to precisely state the fact that the most crucial aspect of any war is the personal tragedy of an individual, the collision of a person’s dreams and hopes with the reality of a military conflict. One of the better means of expressing this aspect is fictional literature. The purpose of this paper is to critically analyze the short story by Tim O’Brien, which is entitled The Things They Carried , to explore its uniqueness, to discuss techniques and arguments which are employed by the author, and to define the importance of the chosen literary piece to retrieve a profound conclusion.

Brief Characteristic of the Author

First of all, it is important to briefly touch upon the personality of the author to offer a more in-depth context for the further analysis of the literary piece. Tim O’Brien was born on October 1, 1946, in Austin, Minnesota and was drafted for military service in Vietnam in 1968 (Stowell 3). After returning from the army, he studied in Harvard and worked as a reporter for different periodicals (Stowell 3). However, he is most recognized for his literary works, which he began to publish since 1973. It is possible to say that the author significantly contributed to the development of the comprehension of the Vietnam War in the American literature. The literary piece under consideration, The Things They Carried , was published in 1990, and in this story, O’Brien continued to explore the settings of the war and numerous issues which are related to it. The following sections will explore various aspects of the literary work.

Core Literary Features of the Story

Furthermore, it is possible to observe the unique characteristics of the short story under discussion in general before dwelling upon the particular aspects more thoroughly and profoundly. In other words, this section serves as an outline for the further developing of this paper.

The following questions will guide the development of the paper: (1) what techniques does the author uses, and (2) what arguments are central to his literary work. These are two principal areas of inquiry for conducting the analysis. First of all, the aspect of technique should be observed to retrieve the most significant features to dwell upon. It is possible to notice one of the critical literary devices that author uses is the word “carry” as a metaphor. This word is present in the title of the story, and it is used throughout the narration in various meanings. Also, the other characteristics of the literary work, such as the composition of the text, use of vivid vocabulary, and narrative approach, will be analyzed as well.

Secondly, after building an analytical basis for the technical aspect of the O’Brien’s writing, it would be possible to investigate his arguments. In other words, the principal ideas, which were implied by the author, will be analyzed in the context of broader notions, such as psychological trauma, affection, duty, leadership, etc. The efficiency of these arguments and ideas along with the uniqueness of the author’s representation of them also will be discussed. In overall effect, the results of studying O’Brien’s techniques and arguments will provide an opportunity to conclude how these characteristics help to define The Things They Carried as the literature of importance.

The Central Metaphor of the Story

As it was already mentioned, it appears that O’Brien has put immense emphasis on the word “carry.” Its use throughout the story represents one of the central author’s ideas, which he wanted to translate through the literary piece under discussion, but this aspect will be discussed later. In this section, the word “carry” be analyzed solely as a literary device.

It is evident that “carry” is a metaphor, but it is interesting to explore how is this metaphor built. The use of this word is repetitive; it is prevalent throughout the story. It is argued that polysemy is used as a principle means of constructing the complex metaphor. Firstly, at the beginning of the literary piece, “carry” is used in its common sense of bearing some weight since the author describe various equipment which is carried by the soldiers (O’Brien 482-483). However, as the story progresses, O’Brien starts to interchange the use of the word in its conventional sense with its application to non-material things (for example, the narrator tells that “they carried themselves with dignity”), and that is how the metaphor is constructed (492). Also, there is a very peculiar transitional point between the direct and metaphorical use of the word “carry”, when O’Brien writes about the material things which were carried by the characters (for example, Jimmy Cross’ good-luck pebble from Martha), but he describes the emotional attachment to these things which every soldier had. Therefore, it is possible to notice that the author shows excellence in constructing an elaborate metaphor which serves as the basis for narration.

Storytelling Technique

Further, the storytelling aspect of the literary work should be analyzed since it also represents the author’s unique approach to describing the war. This section is vastly based on the research by Sadie Williams, in which he studies several literary works by O’Brien, including The Things They Carried . The author’s major assumption is that O’Brien’s storytelling technique can be efficiently compared to Freud’s theory of dreams (Williams 4). Synthesizing Freud’s views on the dream-formation process, Williams states that recalling information from the past in order to share an experience with other individual (which is the definition of storytelling, as a matter of fact) is the process which is similar to the formation of a dream to a significantly vast extent (3).

Further, the author argues that O’Brien’s writings are vastly based on his personal experiences (which was also mentioned in the previous section). Therefore, when he writes a literary piece, he recalls his memories and manipulates them, much like a dream is constructed from the real-life situations, experienced by an individual. It is evident that The Things They Carried does not follow a conventional linear structure of the literary work development. Instead, according to Williams, O’Brien utilizes dreamlike, “non-cohesive and seemingly confusing fashion” to create a story of his war experience, and this story only lacks cohesion on the surface level (4). The following section will discuss the ideas which are principal to the understanding of O’Brien’s work.

Furthermore, it is essential to determine and discuss the most important ideas and arguments which are presented in The Things They Carried . In the first section of this paper, several possible areas of inquiry were identified, and it is possible to restate them before dwelling upon each one in particular: (1) an immense psychological burden resulted in mental trauma, (2) the disruption of affection, and (3) the notion of a real leader. These three topics create an interrelated and profound description of the war’s influence on the life of any involved individual. The following subsections will discuss each of the mentioned aspects in particular.

War Experience as a Psychological Trauma

One of the previous subsections was dedicated to the analysis of the use of metaphor in the literary piece by O’Brien. In this context, it is possible to start with the statement that the concept of a burden is implied by the author by the constant use of the word “carry.” Also, another detail should be mentioned: the author always precisely states the weight of the parts of equipment carried by the soldiers. Therefore, given that “carry” serves as a metaphor in the short story, it is possible to conclude that author also implies that the war put an immense psychological burden on an individual. In the course of time, that individual could not bear this burden any longer, and he or she breaks down, obtaining a mental trauma which might severely affect his or her life even after the war. It could be suggested that the final meaning of the literary work’s title is that the soldiers carry these burdens and traumas out of war into the peaceful life, where they can not adapt. It was the explanation of the central metaphor of O’Brien’s story, and the following subsections will discuss more particular arguments and ideas.

Correlation and Contradiction between Female Affection and War

The second notional component of the story in importance is Jimmy Cross’ affection for a girl named Martha. This aspect is also consistent throughout the story, and it also represents a highly significant argument, implied by the author. Moreover, in the Lieutenant Cross’ perception, his love for Martha is the reason why the soldier under his command was killed. The author creates highly vivid imagery to engage his readers emotionally.

It is spectacular how O’Brien interlaces love with death in one of the final episodes of the story under consideration. At the very moment when he supposed to be in active control of his military squad, he was thinking about Martha. Thus, after the soldier is killed, Jimmy Cross feels a deep emotional pain for losing his friend and colleague (O’Brien 494). However, he also loses his affection for Martha, claiming that there is no more place for such feelings in his life. He also concludes that “his obligation was not to be loved but to lead.” This statement translates the discussion to next topic of leadership.

However, it is also of high interest to touch upon the study by Joseph Patrick Weil, which explores female representations in the contemporary literature, dedicated to the depiction of war. He approaches this question from the standpoint of feminist theory, which is fascinating perspective, especially for the literary work such as The Things They Carried . The author argues that women representations are used as “tools of modern catharsis” (Weil 3). He asserts that the females characters in the prose of O’Brien are translated through unconsciously masculine language, which has a particular rhetorical impact on the narration. The core conclusion by Weil is that O’Brien uses “women as stylistic and rhetorical tools,” which sometimes results in flat characterizations (65).

The Concept of Leadership

Finally, it is possible to dwell upon the third core idea which is expressed in The Things They Carried. It is not given as much space in the story as two previous arguments; however, it is still a highly relevant aspect of the literary piece that should be discussed. First of all, it should be noted that the topic under discussion is inserted into the narration as a part of a conflict between Jimmy Cross’ passionate love for a girl and his military duty, determined by his Lieutenant rank. After one of his soldiers dies, Cross feels his responsibility for this death. He willingly decides that there is no more place for affection and love in his life (O’Brien 495). It could be assumed that this decision is the representation of actual leadership in the opinion of Tim O’Brien. This concept could be described as the superiority of duty, which is the necessity to carry out the responsibility for other people, over the personal feeling and affections of a person. However, it is also evident that this decision is significantly hard for nearly every person because, in the example of Jimmy Cross, it is apparent that had to reject a vital part of his life.

Since the literary piece under consideration was analyzed, it is possible to come to several conclusion. Weil calls O’Brien’s work “a cultural touchstone for the tradition of the American war novel, and a canonical piece whose language is as accessible to its national readership” (20). Therefore, it is evident that the piece under discussion could be defined as the literature of importance. The issues of psychological trauma, affection, and leadership along with the employed techniques were also discussed, and it is evident from the discussion that O’Brien created his work masterly.

O’Brien, Tim. “The Things They Carried.” Reading Literature and Writing Argument , edited by James, Missy, et al., 6th ed., Pearson, pp. 482-495.

Stowell, Jim. “Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried: Play Guide.” History Theater , Web.

Weil, Joseph Patrick. Female representations in contemporary postmodern war novels of Spain and the United States: Women as tools of modern catharsis in the works of Javier Cercas and Tim O’Brien . Dissertation, University of South Carolina, 2015.

Williams, Sadie. An Analysis of Tim O’Brien’s Storytelling Techniques in Going After Cacciato, The Things They Carried and In the Lake of the Woods Using Sigmund Freud’s Dream Theory from On Dreams . Dissertation, Ohio Dominican University, 2016.

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IvyPanda. (2024, March 26). "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien: Novel Analysis. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-things-they-carried-by-tim-obrien-essay-3/

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1. IvyPanda . ""The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien: Novel Analysis." March 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-things-they-carried-by-tim-obrien-essay-3/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . ""The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien: Novel Analysis." March 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-things-they-carried-by-tim-obrien-essay-3/.

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