Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

When one thinks of war, the general thought is that it inspires acts of patriotism and heroism. No one really looks deeper into the topic to find that along with patriotism and heroism there are often feelings of shame and loneliness. In The Things They Carried it is clear that most of the soldiers in the war do not come back with a sense of pride or honor. Most come back wishing they had never gone at all. Tim O'Brien reveals that because Vietnam precipitated such traumatic experiences, his storytelling is a great way to cope with his shame and loneliness, emphasizing that the war experience is not one of patriotism and heroism, but one of loneliness and guilt.
The "things" part of the title represents not only the physical things that the soldiers carried but also the emotions and superstitions. The longing for love and companionship is expressed in the character Henry Dobbins. He wraps a pair of his girlfriend's pantyhose around his neck for good luck. Even after she had broken up with him he still continues to wear them, making his longing for love more evident. Another
In reading The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien relays the results of a soldier who learns to communicate and a soldier who has no one to share his experience with. After the war is over O'Brien discovers that he must write about his pain as a soldier in Vietnam in order for that pain to go away. He writes stories about himself and other soldiers. In doing this, he finds that he is distancing himself from the painful encounters of war. Though O'Brien learns to cope with his stress, Norman Bowker has trouble doing so. He resorts to driving around a lake countless times never leaving the trauma of war behind. His experience in the war haunts him so badly that he commits suicide. Had he had some way of communicating his emotions Bowker probably would not have hung