Impacts Of Trauma In The Things They Carried By O Brien

Francisco Torres

Dr. Stefan

Honors English 12

3 April 2023

Examining the Lasting Impacts of Trauma in O'Brien's The Things They Carried O’Brien’s The Things They Carried (1990) retells the author’s experiences during the Vietnam War through a multitude of short stories. Throughout the novel, he recounts various experiences from his time during and after the Vietnam War. While O’Brien intentionally makes it unclear if the stories he tells are real events that did occur, he has one consistent theme throughout the novel: the lasting impact the trauma he experienced has left on him. Many readers and critics see the novel as the author’s attempt to work through his own trauma. O’Brien’s dramatic retelling of the experiences he underwent gives the

In “Ambush”, where O’Brien killed a lone Vietnamese soldier, we get a glimpse of how O’Brien reacts to the experiences he undergoes during the war. O’Brien gives a grisly description of the dead man’s corpse, showing just how deeply the memory is etched into his brain. O’Brien also speaks of how, years later, he “hasn’t finished sorting it out” (O’Brien 128). Despite so much time passing, he is still incapable of forgiving himself for the things he did during the war. Further, this isn’t the only experience that O’Brien isn’t able to get past. In “How to tell a true war story”, we are treated to the story of Curt Lemon’s death. During a routine patrol, some of the soldiers were playing games to alleviate the stress of war. Unfortunately, a soldier named Curt Lemon steps on a rigged 105mm howitzer shell, and explodes. O’Brien speaks about how, even twenty years after Lemon’s death, he can still vividly picture the death in his mind (O’Brien 80). Both of these examples of death serve to further the idea that O’Brien hasn’t been able to move past the traumatic experiences he experienced during the war. Ultimately, these two vignettes both highlight how trauma can be an inescapable burden that some have to carry for decades before being able to work through

It can remain attached to the mind for decades, unable to be removed and dealt with. From feelings of isolation to obsessing over past actions, trauma can prevent the mind from living a normal life. O’Brien is incapable of forgetting the horrors he experienced during the war, and still had to deal with the memories of the traumatic experiences he underwent. Norman Bowker’s story also acts as a tangible example of what can happen if trauma isn’t confronted. The isolation he felt due to a lack of people who could empathize with his experiences led to his unfortunate suicide. O’Brien’s novel serves as an outlet for him to work through his trauma, as well as offer a warning as to what might happen if others don’t do the same. If O’Brien’s warning isn’t heeded, then the unchecked damage that repressed trauma can cause may lead to vulnerable people suffering the same fate as Norman