ipl-logo

Comparison Between 'Facing It And Spin By Tim O' Brien

671 Words3 Pages

Tanayah London Ms. Okossi English Honors II 6 April 2023 Literary Essay Experiencing war leaves behind a trail of trauma, PTSD, and triggered emotions. The sensation affects others, the environment, and others around you.Soldiers carry a range of physical and emotional burdens during their service, both on and off the battlefield. As claimed by the articles “How will PTSD affect my kids?” by Brooke King, “Facing It” by Yusef Komunyakaa, and “Spin” by Tim O’Brien all develop the idea that in addition to the actual fighting and devastation on the battlefield, war also has a lasting effect on the collective memory and consciousness of the people and civilizations involved. In the article "How will PTSD affect my kids?" by Brooke King provides evidence of the long-lasting and transgenerational effects of trauma and conflict on people and families, supporting the quote that all battles are fought twice—once on the field of battle and again in the memory. King examines how her husband's PTSD from his experience in Iraq affected both him and their children in her article. She describes how her husband's fury, anxiety, and depression difficulties not only hindered his ability to be a father but also caused tension and unpredictability in their household. She also discusses the effects that …show more content…

O'Brien emphasizes the difference between the troops' actual experiences and how those experiences are portrayed in the society and by the government throughout the entire story. He discusses how soldiers are taught to "spin" their perspectives in order to make them more appealing to the American public, frequently by praising their own bravery and understating the atrocities of war. He explains how soldiers can eventually have feelings of remorse and shame due to their sensitivity to violence and

Show More
Related
1158 Words | 5 Pages

In “The Last True Story I’ll Ever Tell”, John Crawford shows how war can drastically change soldiers by having psychological effects on them and when soldiers come back from war they can feel like they are alone. Some psychological effects are post-traumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD, depression,

Read More
1292 Words | 6 Pages

In the short story, “The Man I Killed,” O’Brien focuses on this to show that everyone fighting in a war has a story. He spends the story describing the man he killed and searching for justification of his actions. He carries around guilt with him because of it, and his fellow soldiers try to help him justify and come to terms with his action by saying things like, “You want to trade places with him? Turn it all upside down= you want that? I mean, be honest,” (126) and “Tim, it’s a war.

Read More
1094 Words | 5 Pages

Stories are for those late hours in the night when you can't remember how you got from where you were to where you are". (O'Brien 38) O’Brien uses his stories to reach his audience. There are generations of people who have no clue what war is really like, whether it is because of our misconceptions based on what media portrays or the fact that there are people who have not served in the military. Some people might know about Vietnam and know the outcome of the war, but they don’t have the experience and real life understanding of how that story ended. They might not be able to fully understand the feelings of a soldier.

Read More
886 Words | 4 Pages

O’Brien goes into great depth in this small quote on how loss of innocence and war can affect people in the war. The quote “Often the crazy stuff is true and the normal stuff isn’t” shows how war is so different from what any human experiences at home. After that small quote he follows it up by bringing up how you have to use normal stuff to show how crazy these things are and how much of a pole it can have on somebody during a war. The way that war is treated for many is mostly the mental part that is struggling. But for many "War is hell, but that's not half of it, because war is also mystery and terror and adventure and courage and discovery and holiness and pity and despair and longing and love.

Read More
774 Words | 4 Pages

War has a profound and lasting impact on individuals and society. In “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, he tells different stories of before, during and after war and how it affects the soldiers, mentally and physically. In these stories Tim O’Brien illustrates these traumas and the long-lasting effects and impact that the war will always have on these men. Even though all the men didn’t survive the ones that did continue to have traumatic flashbacks. War has a lasting impact on individuals and society, affecting not only the physical but the mental and emotional well-being of those involved.

Read More
1504 Words | 7 Pages

This quote epitomizes the trauma caused by war. O’Brien is trying to cope, mostly through writing these war stories but has yet to put it behind him. He feels guilt, grief, and responsibility, even making up possible scenarios about the life of the man he killed and the type of person he was. This

Read More
1768 Words | 8 Pages

Dangerous and intense situations typically lead to certain devastating consequences to a persons both emotional and physical health. As result of these experiences, there is often not only exterior injuries, but also the non visual psychological damage that is just as hard, if not harder, to resolve. One commonality throughout all wars is this unseen casualty known as PTSD, or post traumatic stress disorder. Tim O’Brien, veteran of the Vietnam war, demonstrates how PTSD affects soldiers in countless ways in his novel The Things They Carried. He uses fictional but lovable characters that readers can easily relate to, intensifying their emotional engagement in the book.

Read More
1474 Words | 6 Pages

These issues are likely to have repercussions for wives and children. As a result, when compared to a control group, spouses of veterans reported significantly higher physical symptoms, anxiety, sadness, and social dysfunction, as well as significantly lower self-esteem and family cohesion.” (Al-Turkait and Ohaeri). Soldiers frequently develop post-traumatic stress symptoms after dealing with severely injured, suicides, injured children, and deceased individuals. Untreated traumatic events can lead to bad and uncaring behavior toward others, including family members.

Read More
688 Words | 3 Pages

He fought a war in Vietnam that he knew nothing about, all he knew was that, “Certain blood was being shed for uncertain reasons” (38). He realized that he put his life on the line for a war that is surrounded in controversy and questions. Through reading The Things They Carried, it was easy to feel connected to the characters; to feel their sorrow, confusion, and pain. O’Briens ability to make his readers feel as though they are actually there in the war zones with him is a unique ability that not every author possess.

Read More
999 Words | 4 Pages

The True Weight of War “The Things They Carried,” by Tim O’Brien, brings to light the psychological impact of what soldiers go through during times of war. We learn that the effects of traumatic events weigh heavier on the minds of men than all of the provisions and equipment they shouldered. Wartime truly tests the human body and and mind, to the point where some men return home completely destroyed. Some soldiers have been driven to the point of mentally altering reality in order to survive day to day. An indefinite number of men became numb to the deaths of their comrades, and yet secretly desired to die and bring a conclusion to their misery.

Read More
856 Words | 4 Pages

The war destroyed a family “It can take years to mold a dream. It takes only a fraction of a second for it to be shattered”. (Mary E. Pearson). Any war has horrible impacts in the lives of people who are especially involved. It destroys not only a family life but also national and international economy beside the safety of a whole country.

Read More
1375 Words | 6 Pages

For veterans who were wed by time of entry, the risk of divorce was greater among those who entered relatively late in life and those who experienced combat” ( 2004, para. 2) . This shows that having PTSD can not just mess with your mind, but it can also ruin your family and relationships. PTSD is an uncontrollable syndrome that has a high risk of happening when you see the type of things that World War Two veterans saw. World War Two did not just affect the veterans, it also affected their family and loved

Read More
1599 Words | 7 Pages

With dealing with total war for the first time, soldiers felt the trauma that came through war as well as coping with the devastation that they went through after victory.

Read More
828 Words | 4 Pages

The effects of war on soldiers and their family are the level of stress and the aftermath of the war. They are different kind of situations and emotions that families experience during the time of war. First, is the concern that he/she is doing well and safety of that person. Then, comes the responsibilities and having to do things by themselves. Lastly, having the responsibility to take care of their kids emotionally and physically.

Read More
1881 Words | 8 Pages

Soldiers train rigorously, preparing for the departure of war. They sacrifice all that they have to fight for their country. As they return after the war, they are left with painful experiences and traumatizing memories, suffering from their inevitable conditions. However, the spouse, families and children back at home are suffering even more than soldiers.

Read More

More about Comparison Between 'Facing It And Spin By Tim O' Brien

Related Topics

Open Document