Preview

What Are The Themes In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
320 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Are The Themes In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried
The Things They Carried is a memoir of twenty-two stories about the author, Tim O'Brien and his half truth memories of his time as a soldier in the Vietnam War. O'Brien admits in the novel often blurring the line between the real story and the absurd fallacy the names of the characters in the book are those of his comrades the entire collect serves as a self-contained work because it is so loyal to its themes and characters.

"The Things They Carried:" This story introduces the reader to O'Brien's platoon leader, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. The story travels between Cross' obsession with a girl named Martha that he claims he's in love with her because they went on ONE date and the death of Ted Lavender, and an itemized list of what the men carried

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    A true writers writer, Tim O’Brien discusses the connection between truth and storytelling in his novel “The Things They Carried”. He uses stories to dabble on the fine line of what actually happened and what seemed to happen. O’Brien uses his stories not to relay details of a certain event, but rather to express the teeming emotions felt and attempt to keep lost ones alive.…

    • 485 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien is based on the hardships of soldiers when they returned from war. This story is told by 22 chapters, each chapter contains a story, all of the stories are linked together. In the beginning of the story the author describes and lists the items that soldiers carry in combat. These items consisted of matches, food, pictures, money, ammo, grenades, etc.…

    • 332 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried is a very uniquely written book. This book is comprised of countless stories that, though are out of order, intertwine and capture the reader’s attention through the end of the novel. This book, which is more a collection of short stories rather than one story that has a beginning and an end, uses a format that will keep the reader coming back for more.…

    • 1247 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    “The Things They Carried” was written through the eyes of the main character, First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. Throughout the duration of this short story, Lieutenant Cross is battling with himself internally.…

    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, the main character, Jimmy Cross drafted into the United States Army where he served as an infantryman in Vietnam. In the beginning of the story O’Brien, introduce Jimmy Cross as the Lieutenant who is in love with his college crush, Martha. These points lead to the transformation of Lieutenant Cross actions, in which he matures from a man deeply in love to a leader ready to take reasonability.…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Tim O'Brien

    • 1263 Words
    • 6 Pages

    A platoon of seventeen soldiers from America travel in booby-trap swamps and through the hills of Vietnam. “They been ordered to set ambushes, execute night patrols, and search out and destroy the massive tunnel complexes south of Chu Lai constructed by Viet Cong guerrillas” (McCarthy). On their voyage the men carry something with them; the things they carry have a meaning to each soldier which distinguishes them. The men are not completely prepared to deal with the stresses of war emotionally. The story circles around Lieutenant Jimmy Cross and the burden he feels for the death of Lavender, one of his soldiers. “The Things They Carried” reflects on each soldier and their way of trying to escape from the war. American writer Tim O’Brien had many outstanding works including “The Things They Carried”. This work illustrates O’Brien’s use of style,…

    • 1263 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien uses narratives to evoke various thoughts within the reader. Yet Mary Anne Bell's story is a cautionary tale of the influence the battlefield has on a person. One of the medics, Mark Fossie, decides to bring his high school sweetheart right into the war, not comprehending the cost of his action. The war turns innocent, naïve soldiers into brutal, desensitized killers; Mary Anne being no exception. Her tale illustrates how the war physically and mentally alters those who endure it, no matter his or her gender.…

    • 641 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Things They Carried, a collection of short stories written by Tim O'Brien and published in 1990, is a story which takes place during the Vietnam war. The Vietnam war was a battle originally between North and South Vietnam. The United States army was brought in on behalf of South Vietnam. The costs of the Vietnam war were extremely high with approximately three million Vietnamese killed, fifty-eight thousand Americans killed and three-hundred thousand wounded. The main character in the first short story is Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, an American soldier. During war, or any situation, even the unrelated, the presence or lack of responsibility has a huge impact on all following events. As the happenings in the war are described, one may argue that Cross' personal value of responsibility is evident within The Things They Carried.…

    • 628 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many traits of man¡¦s inner nature are revealed through war. In the novel The Things They Carried, the characters of this series of stories embody traits of soldiers in the Vietnam War. Through writing, the author, Tim O¡¦Brien, portrays his feelings as a Vietnam soldier through this novel. He describes the loss of three fellow soldiers, Ted Lavender, Curt Lemon, and Kiowa and depicts the guilt and blame these deaths evoke.…

    • 651 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Things They Carried is a novel by Tim O'Brien that makes someone face reality. War is crazy. Some things seem true and other things they just don’t know what to think. Surrealism means not real. Surrealism has a big part in the war. The hard thing is figuring out what’s not true and what is. It can be tricky, some things that may be false sound like they can’t be made up. Then that’s when their imagination takes over. They have to fight with their imagination and comprehend what they think is real.…

    • 411 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tim O'brien's the Things They Carried is a collection of fictional war stories based on his own time in vietnam. Each stories features a role in a continuous narrative, fractured pieces of one squads experiences in vietnam. O'Brien throughout the novel continuously shits narration, from person to person giving the reader insights into each soldier's perspective. One of the most powerful perspectives came from a character named Tim O'Brien. Throughout the novel his perspective is consistently boyish and fraught with a terror of violence. Despite this as the novel progresses, like his he squad mates, he becomes more and more accustomed of the atrocities of war. Looking back on his experiences as a veteran he decides to write stories about war,…

    • 781 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tim O’Brien wrote The Things They Carry, an emotional story about soldiers leaving home to fight in the Vietnam War and the items they carried with them. O’Brien begins his story, when soldiers go into combat and overseas to serve our country include military issue equipment as well as personal items, which hold memories of fear or emotional value. O’Brien shows readers the weight soldiers carry while serving in the military. The love for family and country are important and how memories can be carried to aid in relieving stress of the battle.…

    • 627 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The Things They Carried” is about the thoughts and actions of Jimmy Cross, a lieutenant of an Army unit on active combat duty in the Vietnam War. Lt. Cross is worried by thoughts of Martha, a young woman he dated before he joined the Army. He thinks about letters she wrote him, whether or not she is a virgin. And about how much he loves her and wants her to love him. Her letters do not indicate that she feels the same way. The narrator lists things that the soldiers carry with them, both tangible and intangible, such as Lt. Cross's picture of and feelings for Martha.…

    • 1442 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the first chapter of the book, O'Brien discusses the physical items the men carry with them. In addition to the expected gear of war the men also carried a unique blend of assorted items. Most of these items served as some sort of escape from the war. For instance, Lieutenant Cross carried with him reminders of a girl he loved named Martha.…

    • 675 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Literature Summary: “The Things They Carried”, published in 1990 tells a true story of Tim O’Brian, author and main character, who is drafted for the Vietnam war. He tells about the different items that him and his fellow soldiers carried with them to help cope with the traumatic environment that they were placed in.…

    • 1873 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays