War In Tim O 'Brien's The Things They Carried'

“There was never a good war or a bad peace.” War, conflict between nations or fellow citizens with the use of arms. War is the most powerful threat we have on earth today. War can accomplish a variety of things in a variety of ways but for the soldiers they are stuck with an experience unlike any other known to the everyday man, stuck with memories and images of what it's like to be hunted by another man. Different people take different things away from war and are affected in different ways, but a change after a war is inevitable and for the vast majority it is difficult to recall his experiences of war yet they are prominently printed into their minds torturing them mentally for the remainder of their lives. This is evidently shown throughout the novel “The Things They Carried” which depicts the impact of the war in many forms, the suicide of an ex-soldier upon his return home; the lessening sanity of a medic as the constant death surrounds him; the trauma and guilt of all the soldiers after seeing their friends die, and feeling as if they could have saved them; and the deaths of the soldiers all of these offsets to their actions and personalities stem from immense difficult for soldiers to recall his experiences of war.
War is standing up for yourself, your nation, your beliefs and rights no matter the cost. Fighting for one’s nation, what they believe in, what they deserve is what drives men in war and in spite of the horrific experiences of war their mindset and perceptions are unaffected due to fighting for what they believe is right and what they love. The horrors of war are remembered and more often than not does not leave an individual’s mind but because of the unwavering duty and patriotism displayed by individuals it isn’t difficult to recall his experiences of war due to the honourable, strong and proud