Pebble In The Things They Carried

The Things They Carried by American author Tim O’Brien, who was drafted in the Vietnam war, describes the experience of the American infantry fighting in Vietnam. O’Brien utilises various rhetorical devices to illustrate the immense emotional & physical burdens the soldiers were to bear to enlighten the reader about the true horrors of war. For example, O’Brien employs asyndeton & polysyndeton in sentences listing the many things the soldiers carried. “They carried Sterno, safety pins, trip flares, signal flares, spools of wire, razor blades…,” (O’Brien). The lists of items carried carry on, overwhelming & exhausting the reader of the physical burdens of war.

Jimmy Cross carried letters and some photograph of a girl named Martha, he loved Martha so much. He kept the letters safe by putting them in his rucksack, and when he rewrite her letters he would imagine them together, “imagine romantic camping trips into the White Mountains” (O’Brien 3). He would imagine being with Martha and daydream and he would sometimes daydream about her and how he wants to tie her up in bed and touch her leg all day and how he wants to be the one who gets to make her no longer a virgin. Moreover when Ted Lavender got shot in the head, Cross felt responsible for his death because he was the lieutenant and all he has been doing is daydreaming about a girl that doesn’t love him back. After the death of Ted Lavender, Cross started to change his colors by letting go if Martha and focusing more on the war.

In the novel, The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien, the author describes a platoon marching through Vietnam at the time of the Vietnamese War. He does so by describing in detail the items that each of the men carry with them during their march. The things that the soldiers carry with them are not only tangible but intangible items as well, and what these things are depend fully upon each individual soldier. They carry Military Payment Certificates, the basic "necessities" for survival along with the bare minimum to make life as livable as possible during the time of war. The men decided on the items they wished to carry with them depending completely on their habits and rate of metabolism.

In the story, “The Thing They Carried” the reader gets to look a little bit deeper into what an everyday soldier does. The narrator describes the things each soldier carries and how a soldier can be identified by these things. Each soldier carries a unique load. Soldiers carry pounds upon pounds of physical burdens that also happen to be precautionary necessities. They carry ammunition, weapons, rations, medical supplies, heavy uniforms, and personal items; but they do not only carry physical burdens.

“He would spend the last hour of light pretending” (page 1). Mitchell Sanders carried condoms, interesting choice but hey, if it made he feel better, go for it. Norman Bowker carried a diary, and Kiowa carried a illustrated New Testament. Every soldier had their own little memory and good luck charm.

Things They Carried Analysis draft In the short story “The Things They Carried,” Tim O’brien uses the literary element of symbolism to portray how people carry different items to represent certain things, and to represent the harsh realities of war and life. He also uses symbolism to show how people become attached to items, and how they take on deeper meanings in times of stress. The story takes place during the Vietnam war, and O’Brien talks about an army detail, and the different things that they carried. This story is a great example of the use of symbolism to represent many different things at once.

Death, especially of a close family member or friend, can cause one to lose hope. Death could include a loss of a loved one, a loss of oneself, or a loss of a passion. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien reveals the significance of death each soldier must come to terms with and the impact that death has on them, their character, and their actions. Each soldier carries objects that represent who they are, what they long for, and what they love. This is what remains constant for the boys in a world of war and death.

Something Most People Don't Realize In “Tim O'Brien's novel,” The Things They Carried, each soldier carries something different that makes them feel safe/something memorable, that helps them get through their time away from home. Whether it be stockings,dental floss,a picture, or even tranquilizers. Henry Dobbins for example carries Stockings/Pantyhose.

Weight possesses interchangeability. It represents two opposing sides of reality’s spectrum; the literal, a heavy load or object, and the metaphoric, a mental or moral burden. In Greek mythology, the iconic story of Atlas and the weight of the world reflects this sameness. The Titan bore an unyielding physical strain along with the ever-present reminder of his moral misdoings; unquestionably, his body and psyche soon began to collapse under the stress. But behind myths, can truth not be found?

Jimmy cross is again the perfect example of a person taking responsibility to lead his partisans through this very important time that is war. " He preferred to view his men not as units but as human beings. and Kiowa had been a splendid human being, the very best, intelligent and gentle and quite-spoken" (164) from the book it’s clearly shown that Jimmy had never intended to these men in the war and only signed up for it for his friend back at college, so he obviously has to take this huge responsibility since they picked him to be the Lieutenant and the leader "there was no way lieutenant cross would allow such a good man to be lost under the slime of a shit field" (164) The soldiers of course also had responsibility to be courageous, to be brave. It doesn’t matter for who or what they were in the war for, but the fact that they were taking a part of it as being soldiers made them responsible for their lives and for the lives of all the soldiers around them.

He accepted the blame of Ted Lavender’s death because he was more focused on Martha than he was about his troops. Wesley states that while Jimmy Cross accepts the blame he thinks this will make it all better by accepting heroic responsibility. This relieved the stress upon Cross and made him feel as if he was even more of a leader and not a coward. When Ted Lavender died they treated it as if it was nothing but a daily routine.

The Things They Carried “They carried were largely determined by necessity. Among the necessities or near-necessities were P-38 can openers, pocket knives…carried rations…carried a toothbrush. ”(2) In this excerpt, from O’Brien’s book “The things they Carried”, the word “carried” is repeated throughout, to emphasize the importance of essential items the soldiers brought with them to war. “Pocket Knives” emphasizes that these soldiers are taking the responsibility of becoming a man and the fact that they will soon be taking another man’s life in war.

Jimmy Cross is the first lieutenant who carries pictures and letters from Martha, the woman he loves who—sadly—does not love him back. The pictures and letters from Martha symbolize Jimmy’s longing to be loved and comforted. It is ironic that although he is the first lieutenant who is expected to take charge and lead others, yet he never took charge of his own love life. This is a regret and burden Cross carries to the end of the story. “It was very sad, he thought.

Along with his military gear, O’Brien states, “Lieutenant Jimmy Cross humped his love for Martha up the hills and through the swamps” (p. 115). Cross loves Martha, and “More than anything, he wanted Martha to love him as he loved her” (p. 114), but is unsure of whether she loves him back. Despite his uncertainty,

Tim O’Brien states, “Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war” (O’Brien 16). In this quote, Tim O’Brien explains that since Jimmy Cross blames himself about Ted Lavender’s death, he will always be in lieutenant’s head. Thus, the lieutenant will always feel the guilt. With this, Tim O’Brien makes the reader think that Jimmy Cross is the person to blame since he is the head of the group and he has to pay more attention to his plans. Having questions about his love, Martha, in his mind instead of being careful about his men is the reason of him feeling guilty that “the lieutenant’s in some deep hurt” (17).