ipl-logo

Comparison Between 'Facing It And Spin By Tim O' Brien

671 Words3 Pages

Tanayah London Ms. Okossi English Honors II 6 April 2023 Literary Essay Experiencing war leaves behind a trail of trauma, PTSD, and triggered emotions. The sensation affects others, the environment, and others around you.Soldiers carry a range of physical and emotional burdens during their service, both on and off the battlefield. As claimed by the articles “How will PTSD affect my kids?” by Brooke King, “Facing It” by Yusef Komunyakaa, and “Spin” by Tim O’Brien all develop the idea that in addition to the actual fighting and devastation on the battlefield, war also has a lasting effect on the collective memory and consciousness of the people and civilizations involved. In the article "How will PTSD affect my kids?" by Brooke King provides evidence of the long-lasting and transgenerational effects of trauma and conflict on people and families, supporting the quote that all battles are fought twice—once on the field of battle and again in the memory. King examines how her husband's PTSD from his experience in Iraq affected both him and their children in her article. She describes how her husband's fury, anxiety, and depression difficulties not only hindered his ability to be a father but also caused tension and unpredictability in their household. She also discusses the effects that …show more content…

O'Brien emphasizes the difference between the troops' actual experiences and how those experiences are portrayed in the society and by the government throughout the entire story. He discusses how soldiers are taught to "spin" their perspectives in order to make them more appealing to the American public, frequently by praising their own bravery and understating the atrocities of war. He explains how soldiers can eventually have feelings of remorse and shame due to their sensitivity to violence and

Show More
Related

  • Tim O 'Briens Ambush And The Morally Injured'

    420 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novels “Ambush” by Tim O'Brien and “The Morally Injured” by Tyler Boudreau discuss both the consequences of war being a curse by having effects on the soldiers by being morally injured on what they experience in war. Furthermore when solider go to war they develope invisible wounds that affect the way the soldiers think when they return home. In the essay “The Morally Injured” by Tyler Boudreau shows that memories of war affect the way soldiers think by saying,”Thousands of veterans have come home in state of near mental collapse, harried by their memories of the battlefield”(P1) This affects the soldiers by having to carry the horrid memories of the war with them for the rest of their life. When coming home they have the experiences

    Read More

  • Soldiers In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

    905 Words  | 4 Pages

    More than half a million service members face mental health challenges during and after war. During war, soldiers are exposed to many different traumatic events that raise the chances of facing mental health challenges. The most common mental health problems soldiers are more likely to carry with them after war is PTSD, depression, alcohol addiction, and anxiety. In the book, “The Things They Carried,” written by Tim O’Brien, characters carried things that are both literal and figurative. While the soldiers carry heavy physical items, they also carry mental, emotional, and physical baggage.

    Read More

  • Truth In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

    919 Words  | 4 Pages

    “I can look at things I never looked at. I can attach faces to grief and love and pity and God. I can be brave. I can make myself feel again” (172). Even though O’Brien was too cowardly to look upon the faces of the fallen soldiers in Vietnam, through his stories, he is able to be brave and feel real pity and responsibility towards the fallen

    Read More

  • Mental Health Of Soldiers In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

    898 Words  | 4 Pages

    When people reach the limit of trauma they can handle they will break down and become permanently scarred. The horrors of war and the gruesome events they experienced haunt Soldiers for the rest of their life. When civilians felt like they missed out by not fighting in Vietnam O’Brien responded with “Well, you missed out on having your legs blown off and you missed out on having nightmares the rest of your life. You missed out on horror” (O’Brien “Civilians” 31). War causes soldiers to witness many horrors giving rise to nightmares when their brains try to process the trauma and horrific acts they witnessed.

    Read More

  • Things They Carried By Tim O Brien: A Literary Analysis

    1292 Words  | 6 Pages

    In the short story, “The Man I Killed,” O’Brien focuses on this to show that everyone fighting in a war has a story. He spends the story describing the man he killed and searching for justification of his actions. He carries around guilt with him because of it, and his fellow soldiers try to help him justify and come to terms with his action by saying things like, “You want to trade places with him? Turn it all upside down= you want that? I mean, be honest,” (126) and “Tim, it’s a war.

    Read More

  • Essay About The Great War

    903 Words  | 4 Pages

    Not only were they physically and psychologically damaged, their new lives in the trenches were horrific, and after the war, veterans returned home unemployed. To begin with, the battle had put so much stress on those fighting in the war; many were not able to return to who they once were. Wounds were battle scars that the soldiers forever carried, and many who could no longer handle the memories of warfare broke down and were taken over by shell shock. William Halse Rivers, a neurologist who treated officers during World War One, states, “I hope to show that many of the most distressing symptoms from which the subject of war neurosis suffer, are not necessarily the result of the strain and shock to which they have been exposed, but are also due to an attempt to banish the mind distressing memories of warfare.” Shell shock and other damages were the results of the battle.

    Read More

  • Traumatic Stress Disorders In Unbroken And All Quiet On The Western Front

    1474 Words  | 6 Pages

    Living with PTSD What is it like to live with a person suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder? What impact will this have on the individual's family? These are some of the questions I asked myself while researching my subject. In this paper, I will explore the effects of PTSD on individuals, making connections between two works of literature, "Unbroken" and "All Quiet on the Western Front".

    Read More

  • Mental Issues In The Things They Carried

    730 Words  | 3 Pages

    They carried shameful memories. They carried the common secret of cowardice.... Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to.” PG 21. This conveys that soldiers who struggled with post traumatic stress disorder faces emotional baggage which stays with them even after leaving the war.

    Read More

  • The Things They Carried: An Analysis

    688 Words  | 3 Pages

    He fought a war in Vietnam that he knew nothing about, all he knew was that, “Certain blood was being shed for uncertain reasons” (38). He realized that he put his life on the line for a war that is surrounded in controversy and questions. Through reading The Things They Carried, it was easy to feel connected to the characters; to feel their sorrow, confusion, and pain. O’Briens ability to make his readers feel as though they are actually there in the war zones with him is a unique ability that not every author possess.

    Read More

  • Summary Of The Last True Story I Ll Ever Tell

    1158 Words  | 5 Pages

    In “The Last True Story I’ll Ever Tell”, John Crawford shows how war can drastically change soldiers by having psychological effects on them and when soldiers come back from war they can feel like they are alone. Some psychological effects are post-traumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD, depression,

    Read More

  • Things They Carried Innocence Quotes

    886 Words  | 4 Pages

    War is nasty; war is fun. War is thrilling; war is drudgery. War makes you a man; war makes you dead." (pg. 80). The effect of war on each soldier who fought in it was different and unique, and as a result, each soldier's experience with war has a different effect.

    Read More

  • PTSD In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

    1504 Words  | 7 Pages

    The novel focuses on coping with the death and horror of war. It also speaks volumes about the true nature of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the never-ending struggle of dealing with it. In the

    Read More

  • Thesis For The Things They Carried

    999 Words  | 4 Pages

    The True Weight of War “The Things They Carried,” by Tim O’Brien, brings to light the psychological impact of what soldiers go through during times of war. We learn that the effects of traumatic events weigh heavier on the minds of men than all of the provisions and equipment they shouldered. Wartime truly tests the human body and and mind, to the point where some men return home completely destroyed. Some soldiers have been driven to the point of mentally altering reality in order to survive day to day. An indefinite number of men became numb to the deaths of their comrades, and yet secretly desired to die and bring a conclusion to their misery.

    Read More

  • Emotional Effects Of War On Soldiers Essay

    1881 Words  | 8 Pages

    However, they are left with the memories of what they saw. Soldiers affected by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD causes them to “often recall and re-experience the specific trauma of war” (The Emotional Effects of War on Soldiers). This means that any type of thing that reminds the soldier of the war, will cause them to relive that moment. Whether it’s a loud noise, a crowd of people, or a weapon, even the simplest word can make them remember the exact feeling of the war.

    Read More

  • A Man Said To The Universe Analysis

    828 Words  | 4 Pages

    The effects of war on soldiers and their family are the level of stress and the aftermath of the war. They are different kind of situations and emotions that families experience during the time of war. First, is the concern that he/she is doing well and safety of that person. Then, comes the responsibilities and having to do things by themselves. Lastly, having the responsibility to take care of their kids emotionally and physically.

    Read More

More about Comparison Between 'Facing It And Spin By Tim O' Brien

Open Document