ipl-logo

Exploring Martha In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

1174 Words5 Pages

Hintz-1 Sullivan Hintz Mr. Seland ACP Discovering Literature April 9th 2024 Exploring Martha, and her substantial impact in “The Things They Carried” Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried” is set in the middle of the Vietnam War and goes over the burdens, both physical and emotional, that the soldiers in the story carry. In the story, we will specifically be focusing on the physically absent character Martha, a college student whom Lieutenant Cross has a rather interesting relationship with. Although she is not physically present, Martha’s limited appearances may be what makes her so powerful in this short story. I believe Martha’s emotions towards her and Cross’s relationship also embody a mirror image of what soldiers feel in the middle …show more content…

Cross loves the idea of Martha, as he wants the stability and connection that she brings to the table to get his mind off the fact that he is in the middle of a war. Martha stands as a beacon of bright light in the middle of his darkness, and that’s why it’s so hard for Cross to come to terms that maybe this isn’t good for him. As time passes, Cross continues to think about his situation, and he eventually becomes more sensible “He was realistic about it”. There was that new hardness in his stomach. He loved her, but he hated her. (636)” This relates to the morale of soldiers during the war, they start in semi-positive spirits, but as they continue to suffer from the mental load of war and become realistic about their situation it becomes a whole lot more real for them. Martha also facilitates the change to deep reflection from Lieutenant Cross. Simple interactions with Martha prompt Cross to grow as a leader and human. As Cross evaluates their relationship he touches on his own conflicting emotions and desires, an example of which is when Cross reminisces over the time when he and Martha were together physically, causing a whole spiral of emotions and further reminiscing. Cross starts to realize that this fixation with her is putting great stress on not only him but also the lives of the men he oversees. This causes Cross to realize that maybe this fixation is a very bad thing for the situation he is in. In addition to all the important pieces mentioned already, we also need to touch on the fact that Martha influences this much in Cross’s life while still being a minor character in Hintz-4 in the story. The argument could be made that Martha does have a fair number of appearances in the story, but what makes her a minor character is that she is not actually in the story herself. Martha is never talking, rather she is only

Show More
Related

The Things They Carried Jimmy Cross Character Analysis

670 Words | 3 Pages

The short story “The Things They Carried”, by Tim O’Brien, is about the experience of a team of American soldiers in the Vietnam war (Julia Guance et al. 323). O’Brien fought in the war of Vietnam himself and used writing as a way to express the realities of war (322). His works are realistic, given his personal experience at war. Each soldier in the story “The Things They Carried” carry specific objects that reflect their personality and priorities. Jimmy Cross is a twenty-four-year-old, American First Lieutenant.

Read More

Things They Carried By Tim Obrien Sparknotes

1661 Words | 7 Pages

For Veterans, war has impacted a majority of their life due to the traumatic events that they encounter, so they are left them with the last decision, which it could be drugs or suicide. In the book, The Things They Carried, Tim Obrien writes several short stories on the Vietnam War. A fictional book based on real events and how he describes the Vietnam War as the most significant event in his life because of the things he and his friends had to face. It studies the nature of young men in a time of war, and what made them do tough decisions in and after the war. The thing that is noticeable at first is how characters go into development, and how they listed the things the men had carried with the profound irony being that is not the physical thing they carried but the nonphysical thing they carried, the emotion, the experience and the guilt they encounter in Vietnam.

Read More

Conflict In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

1041 Words | 5 Pages

“The Things They Carried” The narrative “The Things They Carried” by Tim O'Brien shows the man versus self conflict of the inexperienced Lieutenant Jimmy Cross and his troop in the Vietnam war. O’Brien tells the story of the lieutenant’s struggles, sacrifices and transformation that the war inflicted on him. Struggle was no stranger to Lieutenant Jimmy Cross or his grunts deep in the swamps of Vietnam. They struggled across the lush jungle with the physical burden of carrying all the possessions they would need to eat, sleep, and live in the foreign mud, or at least everything the US Army found fit to issue them for such a task.

Read More

How Did Lieutenant Jimmy Cross Get Responsible For The Loss In The Things They Carried

725 Words | 3 Pages

He feels guilty because the men in his company are under his command and he was supposed to keep them safe, but he failed because he wasn’t paying attention. He kept daydreaming about Martha, who Lieutenant Cross had a crush on, when he should’ve been paying attention to the battle happening at the time. And as a result, he blames his obsession on Martha and himself for the death of Ted. To atone for the death of Ted, Lieutenant Cross decided to burn “Martha’s letters” (Tim O'Brien 22), pictures, and threw away a pebble that Martha had given him. He threw away all reminders of Martha to make sure that the memory of Martha would never distract him again so that his men won’t have to die like Ted

Read More

Ted Lavender Analysis

1264 Words | 6 Pages

24 The tone of this part is angry, confusion, and love. It seems that Lt. Jimmy Cross is blaming himself for being distracted about his love, Martha, during

Read More

Irony In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

2048 Words | 9 Pages

By carrying the pebble of Martha around, Jimmy Cross creates a false hope of them being together, knowingly distracting him from his duties as

Read More

Summary Of Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

1166 Words | 5 Pages

Lieutenant Jimmy Cross’s love for Martha is his way to get through the terrors of war, but his love for Martha is also a distraction from the war and from leading his men. Jimmy Cross not only carries the responsibility of upholding the mission, but he also carries the responsibility of his men’s lives. Jimmy Cross was obsessed with Martha, and that obsession, blinded him from the dangers of the war. For example, Ted Lavender was shot down while Cross was daydreaming of being together with Martha. For Jimmy Cross, his love for Martha is the most precious thing he carried.

Read More

The Things They Carried Rhetorical Analysis

1158 Words | 5 Pages

The short story, “The Things They Carried,” written by Tim O’Brien (1990), appears to be an unpretentious narration that list the tangible items carried by the soldiers while fighting in the Vietnam War. Upon further review it becomes clear that the lists of “things” have a much deeper meaning and carry an abundance amount of emotional weight. Not only is their load a physical burden that consist of hefty equipment that is necessary for survival, but they also bear the burden of internal conflict. The internal conflicts identified in the story center around the disturbing afflictions carried by the soldiers revealing that the men long for an escape from their dreadful surroundings, feel responsible for the lives of their fellow soldiers,

Read More

Perspectives Of Women In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

888 Words | 4 Pages

Cross continues to like Martha even though he’s aware of Martha’s feelings towards him. It is absolutely sad to see Cross daydreaming about Martha so often when Martha has never returned the love he has given to her. Sooner or later,

Read More

All Is Not Fair In Love And War Analysis

1009 Words | 5 Pages

Along with his military gear, O’Brien states, “Lieutenant Jimmy Cross humped his love for Martha up the hills and through the swamps” (p. 115). Cross loves Martha, and “More than anything, he wanted Martha to love him as he loved her” (p. 114), but is unsure of whether she loves him back. Despite his uncertainty,

Read More

Symbolism In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

648 Words | 3 Pages

Jimmy Cross is the first lieutenant who carries pictures and letters from Martha, the woman he loves who—sadly—does not love him back. The pictures and letters from Martha symbolize Jimmy’s longing to be loved and comforted. It is ironic that although he is the first lieutenant who is expected to take charge and lead others, yet he never took charge of his own love life. This is a regret and burden Cross carries to the end of the story. “It was very sad, he thought.

Read More

War In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

868 Words | 4 Pages

It looks to be as if he is falling more and more in love with Martha, because she sends him a small pebble and he carries it everywhere and even puts it in his mouth to taste the sea salt. However, it slowly became clear that Lieutenant Cross was becoming more cold but the story becomes more expressive of what Cross is feeling. As the story continues Cross expresses his love and still daydreams about Martha, however he one day goes to the trench and puts the letters she sent him in a fire. He gets colder and starts to act more like a commander of his squadron, he also makes sure to pay attention more. As he thinks of Martha he just knows that she belongs somewhere else.

Read More

Love In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

854 Words | 4 Pages

Lt Cross thought “he loved her more than anything, more than his men, and now Ted Lavender was dead because he loved her so much and could not stop thinking about her” (p567). This is when the story began to turn. Lt Cross became overwhelmed with guilt, he blamed himself for the death of Lavender. If only he could keep the thoughts of Martha's letters, and face out of his mind, he would be able to guide his team safely through this war. “...yet he could not bring himself to worry about matters of security” (pp 570), this is when Lt Cross realized that it was he who was in charge of the team, and the emotional heartfelt daydreaming had cause the loss of one of this

Read More

Innocence In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

1623 Words | 7 Pages

Cross felt great guilt for Lavender’s death, he felt that if he had only been paying attention instead of daydreaming of Martha, Lavender would not be dead. “ He felt shame. He hated himself. He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war” (O’Brien 2647). Lieutenant Cross had been the in presence of the death of a friend, but it was not paying attention, but rather thinking of his love back home.

Read More

Jimmy Cross Martha Quotes

601 Words | 3 Pages

When she came aware of the obsession Jimmy Cross had for her eventually it turned her off . In The things they Carried Martha and Jimmy Cross situation is a symbol of love that Jimmy cross have

Read More

More about Exploring Martha In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

Open Document