Symbolism In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

However, three of these soldiers are affected in an outlandish way. The lives of soldiers, Norman Bowker and Curt Lemon, illustrate how the war pressures the human spirit to a standard it can’t resemble. The pressure and responsibilities of lost friends and lost acts of courage heavily weigh Norman Bowker down,

Tim O'Brien's “The Things They Carry,” tells a story about the lives of young men during war. The narrator tells his story from first person, marking all of his adventures and experiences of his companions. O’Brien crafts his piece through the use of repetition, symbolism, and metaphors to convey the idea of physical and psychological hardships of soldiers during war. Though the literary device of repetition, O'Brien portrays the physical and psychological hardships of a soldier. For example, the narrator repeatedly describes the weight of weight during the soldiers arduous journey: “Among the necessities or near necessities were R-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wristwatches, dog tags, mosquito repellants, chewing gum, candy, cigarettes, salt tablets...2-3 canteens of water.

Literary Analysis on Short Stories In the short story of Tim O'brien's The Things They Carried uses symbolism to suggest that items that the soldiers Kiowa, Lavender and Cross carried represent their values and where they come from. O'brien successfully shows in depth what each character mentioned in the short story represents in relation to the narrator by mentioning the items and memories that each individual carried. The narrator (O’brien) lists things that the soldiers carry with them, both tangible and intangible. Other members of the unit are introduced through descriptions of the things they carry, such as Ted Lavender who carried tranquilizer pills and excessive amounts of ammunition, Jimmy Cross who carried photos of his lover back home and Kiowa who carried a hunting hatchet. O'Brien introduces readers to the short story’s primary characters by describing the “things” that the soldiers carried.

In the meantime, he makes things from craft kits. He started by building a miniature log cabin from notched Popsicle sticks.” (356) The readers learn that Leroy Moffitt has been home for three months recovering from an accident he suffered during his job, however it had rendered him disabled and therefore, could not return to his job. As the quote suggests, Leroy adopted interesting skills to pass the time at home such as crafting and even sewing. Mason reveals that the reason Leroy wanted to build a log cabin was because he had promised his wife ever since they were married that he would build her a new home. Although it appeared to be a sweet gesture, it was the first indication that Leroy was living in the past, unlike his wife.

In the beginning of "The Things They Carried" we are introduced to each character by the things they carry. It lists a variety of things that the soldier brought on their mission. For example, some of the things were intangible, such as sickness, guilt, and the atmosphere. Other soldiers were carrying physical objects, including P-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wrist-watches, dog tags and etc. as listed in (O 'Brien).

. Tim O'Brien's most recent book, The Things They Carried, begins with a litany of items that the soldiers "hump" in the Vietnam War - assorted weapons, dog tags, flak jackets, ear plugs, cigarettes, insect repellent, letters, can openers, C-rations, jungle boots, maps, medical supplies, and explosives as well as memories, reputations, and personal histories. In addition, the reader soon learns, the soldiers also carry stories: stories that connect "the past to the future" (40), stories that can "make

Native Roots There are many stories of people who have faced challenge and hardship in their lives; however, the story “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona” offers a different element. The main characters, Victor and Thomas Builds-the-Fire, are Native American men who live on an Indian Reservation. While Victor and Thomas come from similar backgrounds, there are both similarities and differences between these two characters that contribute to the story. The author, Sherman Alexie, tells this the story in a third person narration. Alexie is also a Native American who describes his own writing as “very personal and autobiographical” (Nygren, “A World of Story” 298).

Sir Gawain and Cú Chulainn Tales of heroes who have to fight the temptation of lust and treasure in order to overcome evil have been around since the dawn of mankind. Humanity has always been fascinated by the powerful and otherworldly, concepts they had to contest in their everyday lives. After all, the common notion was that there must be someone out there to glorify, someone who possessed qualities no man could ever possess yet who still had to face the same temptations everyone else faced. Examples of this can be found in the Aeneïd, in which Aeneas is forced to leave his loved one behind to follow his leaders orders. They also appear in the Táin Bó Cuialgne and the Fled Bricrenn, in which the mighty hero Cú Chulainn is faced with the consequences of his own arrogance.

He did not want them themselves really.” (P.3, line 34-36). The lost generation refers to the generation of young men who served in the first world war and that can be related to Krebs because he did serve in the war. Wandering without direction or goal is something that happens a lot to the lost generation and this most definitely is also an issue Krebs is dealing with himself. The feeling of being lost and not a part of society also stems from the military teaching Krebs that he should not love anyone not even his mother. “ 'Yes, Don 't you love your mother, dear boy? '

Lt. Cross’s other character shortcoming is his emotional and personal inability to lead the Alpha Company. Cross zealously guards a picture of a girl named Martha, who is not even his girlfriend, to continue with his strong linkage to love as well as his livelihood. However, he fails to remember the connection between love and war in the plot. He depends upon his love for Martha as a huge escape from the reality of war. Unable to handle the combination of being in love as well as being in the war at the same time, his love for Martha arrays itself in his mind as fiction.

I also repeatedly found the phrases “they carried”, and “they would” within the text, which both indicate the homogeneity among the soldiers now that their previous identities have been stripped away. The phrase “they carried” is used to reference not only the positive and reminiscent things the soldiers carry, but also the many negative aspects that the war has inflicted upon them as

* Compartmentalisation of the accommodation using blocks and HESCO. * I also carried out forks jobs throughout the tour. Oct 2007 38 Engr Regt Ex Okehampton. Tasks included pot hole repair around camp and also digging in battle trenches for the infantry call signs in both day and night conditions. Dec 2007 38 Engr Regt Plant concentration (Ellington Banks).

Martha had a big effect on Jimmy cross 's during his adventure in Vietnam. “Jimmy Cross 's had loved Martha more than his man , and as a consequence lavender was dead now and this was something he had to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war and life.” Martha was a young lady that Lieutenant Jimmy Cross was obsessed with.It was very possible the distraction of Martha caused lavender to die. Although Martha never loved cross. When she came aware of the obsession Jimmy Cross had for her eventually it turned her off . In The things they Carried Martha and Jimmy Cross situation is a symbol of love that Jimmy cross have

In chapter 1, “The Things They Carried”, O’Brien introduces his readers to the men he served with in Vietnam. O’Brien uses the list of physical objects that the members of the members of his unit in Vietnam to portray the things that are important to a soldier and their emotional burden. Based on chapter 1, O’Brien demonstrates the emotional burden soldiers must carry. For instance, Cross was “… grieving for Ted Lavender, but mostly for himself, and for himself…” (O’Brien 16). Ted Lavender was a soldier who smoked and used tranquilizers because of his fear of dying.

The thought of death being so near and the thought of never seeing their loved ones must be terrifying . Therefore, I think it is normal for soldiers to have some kind of souvenir from home to help them remember the good times and to take their minds off the war. Lieutenant Cross’s situation was a bit different from the other soldiers because he had became obsessed with Martha. A woman who did not love him and only thought of him as a friend.