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Love In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

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War forces soldiers to abandon inapplicable feelings, such as those of love, in order to fulfill the duties of war. If a man is constantly focused on his “sweetheart at home”, or a lieutenant is wrapped up in becoming friends with his soldiers, he won't be able to dedicate one hundred percent of his energy to the fight for his country. Considering a soldier's primary job is serving his country, devoting himself to the war and the fight, love has no place in Vietnam. After Ted Lavender's death, Lieutenant Cross reevaluates his priorities, because he feels as if his love for Martha got in the way of protecting the lives of his inferiors. Cross thinks to himself, “… his obligation was not to be loved but to lead. He would dispense with love; it …show more content…

In order to be a successful lieutenant, Cross can't focus on love. Among soldiers exists a belief that love is a feminine emotion, and therefore, love and war can't coexist. If his soldiers envision their superior as a friend, with whom they can discuss lighthearted topics with, Cross's unit won't sustain the same war-like mentality their opponents put forth. In “The Things They Carried”, Cross burns Martha’s letters to represent the destruction of his love for her, “On the morning after Ted Lavender died, First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross crouched at the bottom of his foxhole and burned Martha's letters” (O’Brien 22). Burning the letters was a physical gesture that was meant to dispel all feelings of love towards “sweetheart”. Though the letters were small and weightless, they proved as heavy emotional baggage to Cross. The letters distracted him from giving all of his attention to his soldiers, making him feel responsible for Ted Lavender’s death. A lieutenant's obligation is to lead his men to be successful, blocking out any emotions that will impede upon the success of their unit as a

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Lieutenant Cross comes to realize “his obligation was not to be loved but to lead” (337). Meaning can be found in the fact that as Cross no longer carries these gifts Martha sent him, he is beginning to free himself of her distraction and the fantasy-like mindset he has. However, now he must carry the weight of the guilt of Lavender’s death and the responsibility of being a tough

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Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, of the Alpha Company, carries various reminders of his love for Martha, a girl from his college in New Jersey who has given no indication of returning his love. Cross carries her letters in his backpack and her good-luck pebble in his mouth. After a long day’s march, he unwraps her letters and imagines the prospect of her returning his love someday. Martha is an English major who writes letters that quote lines of poetry and never mention the war. Though the letters are signed “Love, Martha” Cross understands that this gesture should not give him false hope.

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Even though that deaths like this are common he sensed that if his attention had been focused on his men that Lavender death could have been prevented. He felt even more guilt when Curt Lemon was killed by a land mine and he was deeply affected by Kiowa's death at Song Tra Bong where he mistakenly decided to rest his men. These were feelings he would have to carry like a rock in his stomach for the rest of the war (O'Brien). Lieutenant Cross’s turning point came when he finally realized that his responsibility to his men was more important than fantasizing about Martha. He realized that when each of his men’s lives were in danger, he was thinking about Martha and wondering if she was a virgin.

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In the beginning, Lt. Cross was all in love with Martha and nothing else came close to even being thought about. Martha was a girl that he met before going overseas when he went over they started sending letters to each other. Although those were not lover letters, Cross always hoped that one day they would be, “Wash his hands under a canteen, unwrap the letters, hold them with the tips of his fingers, and spend the last

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1423 Words | 6 Pages

Before going to war, one could not fathom the emotional and physical strain it has on the body and mind. Once these men have fought in battle, the reality they face is overwhelming. What the soldiers experience is indescribable to those who were not there to witness it. In order to cope many soldiers will distract themselves from the hard truth that sits in from of them. In “Love,” Jimmy Cross keeps his mind on his love for Martha and how she is in love with him and they will be together when he returns from Vietnam.

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(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.

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649 Words | 3 Pages

That includes many letters from Martha, pictures of Martha, and a pebble that Martha found and give it to him. The reason why Lieutenant Cross keeps his love for Martha is because he wants to maintain a strong link to love and his life at home. He uses her as a distraction from the war because war is rugged and uneasy. “ I love her” (28). He says he loves her but does he mean it.

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Cross blames himself, knowing “He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead…” (p. 121). First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is distracted by his infatuation for Martha, which ultimately results in Ted Lavender’s death, forcing Cross to realize his fantasies for Martha are wrong and that he is not fulfilling his duties as a lieutenant. Lieutenant Cross is inattentive to the war and his responsibilities because he is unable and unwilling to stop thinking about his adoration for Martha.

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The story describes in detail the physical equipment each soldier carries, as well as the emotional baggage related to each item. One day, while soldier Ted Lavender is taking a bathroom break, he is shot and killed. Cross proceeds to blame himself for Lavender’s death as he was preoccupied with thoughts of Martha at the moment he was shot. The morning after, Cross digs a foxhole to put Martha’s letters and photos in and burns them. He believes he must let go of these desires to be as great a leader as possible for his troops.

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934 Words | 4 Pages

Tim O’Brien states, “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 16). In this quote, Tim O’Brien explains that since Jimmy Cross blames himself about Ted Lavender’s death, he will always be in lieutenant’s head. Thus, the lieutenant will always feel the guilt. With this, Tim O’Brien makes the reader think that Jimmy Cross is the person to blame since he is the head of the group and he has to pay more attention to his plans. Having questions about his love, Martha, in his mind instead of being careful about his men is the reason of him feeling guilty that “the lieutenant’s in some deep hurt” (17).

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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.

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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

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1003 Words | 5 Pages

Unrequited love can go hand in hand with romantic love and often does. In the first few chapters of The Things They Carried, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross talks about the love of his life who remains back home. He loves her with everything he has but she does not return the feelings. He loves her before he leaves for the war, he loves her during the war, and even loves her after the war. Unrequited love follows Jimmy Cross throughout the novel.

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747 Words | 3 Pages

Lavender was dead. You couldn’t burn the blame” (O’Brien 22). This quote is important because it tells about why LT. Cross burned the letters and what other

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As O’Brien explains, “Lieutenant Cross kept to himself. He pictured Martha's smooth young face, thinking 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

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