“True” is a word that defines as in accordance with fact or reality ("true: definition of true in Oxford dictionary (American English) (US)", 2016). The Things They Carried, a novel written by Tim O’Brien, defines as a “true” story because it discusses soldiers’ real experiences in the Vietnam War. Tim O’Brien wrote his novel based on his experience in the war as a young adult and his account of the Vietnam War has created discrepancy among readers on whether his novel is a “true” story or a glorified piece of exaggerated fiction. The Things They Carried was written to convey soldiers’ real experiences of the war and therefore is a “true” story. The components of a “true” war story are defined through its moral and purpose. A “true” war story
Metafiction is a literary technique used by Tim O’Brien to frequently remind the readers of the fictional quality of his war stories and to emphasize the relations between fiction and reality. “Good Form” is an example of metafiction because it not only accounts for the reason why Tim O’Brien produces made-up stories—to deliver his personal feelings to the audience—but also makes the readers realize that The Things They Carried is a work of fiction, instead of a description of the reality. Tim O’Brien also applies metafiction to previous chapter, “How to Tell a True War Story”, and both chapters express the notion that feelings or morals are greater than facts. “Good Form” directly informs the readers about the author’s fabrication on the
“How to Tell a True War Story” and “Ambush” are stories that both explore on topics: truth, the real definition of a true war story, and the role of truth. O 'Brien starts off “How to Tell a True War Story” with “This is true.” Starting this story with such a bold sentence not only makes it seem more true, but to some extent, it acts as a comfort statement to the narrator’s own doubts, as if there were unspeakable uncertainties and lies of the narrator. The title of this story also comes into play, with a meta-fictional name “How to Tell a True War Story”, as if it were a guide, a manual, having a true war story tell the readers how to tell a true war story. However ironically, towards the middle of the story, us as
He then begins to speak about the difference between “real truth” and “story truth.” Sometimes story truth is more true than real truth due to the emotions that the reader experiences. O’Brien’s goal was for the readers to believe these experiences were true down to the very last detail. This makes the audience grasp a better understanding of what these soldiers actually experienced in battle. In “How to Tell a True War Story” Mitchell Sanders shares a story with Tim about when a troop is on an operation in the mountains for an operation.
Soldiers are always seen as war heroes and sometimes even as legends. But for Tim O’Brien, this is quite the opposite. The Things They Carried shares a story of a group of soldiers in Vietnam and along the way, many questions are raised towards war. One of the plethora of questions the book asks is if soldiers are heroes. Are they still heroes even after killing an innocent life?
The Things They Carried is a collection of stories written by Tim O’Brien to depict what soldiers, including himself, had experienced while fighting across seas in the Vietnam War. The collection of stories begins with a section titled “The Things They Carried”. Tim O'brien is the main character, and he is a soldier fighting with his fellow comrades in a group named Alpha Company and he describes the belongings and equipment that each soldier carries while also providing a short background of a few men. Many characters reappear throughout the collection of stories that are told by Tim.
What is surrealism? How do you know what’s real or unreal? Sometimes when authors write we can’t tell if it's real or more of an exaggeration. We can't really understand the truth. In the novel ‘’The Things They Carried’’ by Tim O’Brien is about the Vietnam War and his experiences with it.
On the topic of morality: to be moral is to know the distinction between right and wrong, or to have that distinction in general. The truth in war, O’Brien argues, is never moral. If the truth is moral, then it is a lie (65). Even if the truth is the story-truth (171), it can be more real more true, and more astonishing than the whole of the real truth.
Darkness of Light, Memory of Loss The mirror that reflects you is the truth and the darkness that shines through is your reflection that finds light within war and that light within war is the truest love story ever told. In the nonlinear novel, The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien focuses on what a true war story is and how to differentiate between a lie and a truth, which to believe and the difference between story-truth and happening-truth. Tim O’Brien uses his skill in storytelling to convey his memories to people who have not fully experienced the Vietnam War first hand.
In The Things They Carried, the author and narrator, Tim O' Brien seeks to go beyond simply telling the stories he has to tell about his time as a soldier in the Vietnam War. He wants to tell the audience a true war story, and dedicates a chapter, aptly named "How to Tell a True War Story," to giving the reader a better idea of his idea of how a war story should be told. O'Brien's recounting of the story of the baby buffalo epitomizes his view of telling a war story by implementing the concept of blurring truth and fiction which recurs throughout the book and exemplifies how it could enhance the reader's interpretation and understanding of the events and ideas that the author wants to convey, which go beyond a simple retelling of a war story,
In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien highlights his conflict between escaping to Canada or staying to fight through the contrast of his initial and latter beliefs to demonstrate how society can keep people from staying with their individual convictions. For O’Brien, it is far more important to live by his principles than to follow his duty to his family and the law. He says that he wants to “choose a life for myself” (53), speaking to his desire to run off to Canada. O’Brien initially thought that “life” means to be free from the draft and to survive. However, when his wishes conflict with what society expects, for him to be brave and sacrifice for his country, he vacillates between continuing onto shore or staying to fight.
In the chapter, How to Tell a True War Story, he emphasizes this a lot. “In many cases a true war story cannot be believed. If you believe it, be skeptical. It’s a question of credibility. Often the crazy stuff is true and the normal stuff isn't, because the normal stuff is necessary to make you believe the truly incredible craziness.”
According to Roland Barthes “Literature is the question minus the answer. In The Things They Carried, a collection of short stories, by Tim O'Brien we are left to deal with the question of ‘What is the real truth?’ Throughout the story, we are introduced to multiple types of truth. They include physical truth, in which the story tells what the men are physically carrying. Consequently, it is also compared to emotional truth, what emotional baggage the men carry with them from place to place.
His personal accounts gave the reader only a slight insight as to what it might have been like to be a participant in the carnage first hand. There are copious accounts from other soldiers, generals, and bystanders that have gone unheard. The war was a puzzle that got solved as the country figured out where the pieces went. Sam Watkins’ stories help put the lost pieces back in place. His exuberant stories were a roller coaster ride of emotions and actions.
The Challenge of Bravery and Courage are unexpected obstacles for everyone who was drafted into the Vietnam War, especially for Tim O’Brien who is the narrator and the Author of “The Things They Carried”. Before O’Brien gets drafted into the Vietnam War, he highlights the consumption of tone and juxtaposition on the effects of war while his allies are trying to empathize to his feelings. The theme also relates to Khaled Hosseini’s story “Kite Runner” where as a kid, Amir struggled with bravery and courage when he wasn’t there for Hassan. In Order for O’Brien to seek truth behind War, he’ll need to experience the environment in-action which is why he was forced to see everything later on in the story.
Storytelling has such a large impact on all stages of life. Stories are told to teach a lesson, give hope, or get someone through a hard time. Tim O’Brien uses storytelling in his book, The Things They Carried, to teach lessons from war, and help readers understand about the baggage people bring to war. The publisher section of this novel has this warning in it, "This is a work of fiction. Except for a few details regarding the author's own life all incidents, names, and characters are imaginary” (O'Brien).