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Pain In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

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Recommended: Emotional and psychological effects of war on soldiers

For the average reader of “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, it is hard to understand why the author chose the title he chose. Even though the first chapter is literally about what the soldiers carried, the rest of the book seems like just a collection of stories. From how war changes people to blame and to killing people, the books seemingly discusses everything but what the men in Vietnam carried. But at a closer glance, Tim O’Brien actually is writing about what the soldiers carried. The physical pain they experience day in and day out. The psychological burden that comes from wanting to blame someone for all the madness that is war and not having anyone to blame is one of the heaviest things the soldiers have to carry and think …show more content…

The fact that the author may not have killed anyone can be disregarded, because it is apparent that a lot of the soldiers in his platoon have. When Tim goes to war, he reasons that if it was a war against something he did not like, he would gladly kill and be killed for it, but since he did not support the war he was drafted into, he could not be killed, let alone kill for it. This is why the burden he carries gets much heavier, because the he does not see the men he kills as enemies. He has to live with the regret of killing someone every day, and it is exactly the same amongst his fellow soldiers. In the chapter “The Man I Killed”, the author is seen looking over at the body of a Vietnamese soldier he killed and he starts thinking about the soldiers life, where he was from and where he studied. This is clearly seen on page 128, where on the second paragraph the author sais “So, yes, maybe a scholar. And for years, despite his family's poverty, the man I killed would have been determined to continue his education in mathematics.” Instead of hating the man he killed, the author feels bad, and builds a life for the guy. He has to live with that guilt every day, he has to think about how the guy could have been a mathematics major, and this makes what he has to carry much

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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,

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In The Things Things they carried by Tim O'brien, many soldiers are forced to deal with guilt for their entire lives. Many of these men were drafted into war and witnessed their fellow soldiers die for unnecessary reasons. As an example, Tim O’brien feels a great guilt for the man who he said he killed with a grenade and this is a major lifelong burden for him. This guilt is something that Tim is forced to carry for his life which relates back to the title, The Things They Carried. In Norman Bowker’s case, his guilt eventually lead him to hang himself not too long after the war.

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“Doesn't matter what the press says doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the country decides something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: The requirement that we stand up for what we believe no, matter the odds or consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world. No you move.”

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“The things they carried” is a story that holds not even the slightest bit back and lays it out there for us. It tells the real straight forward story of Tim O’ Brien, And his alpha platoon mates. The psychological lens would be perfect for the chapter “Speaking of courage”, For the simple fact that this chapter is about O’Brien is trying to sort out everything that has happened in nam and what is happening till this day. By putting a psychological lens on the chapter “Speaking of Courage” is a good way to get into the head of Tim O’Brien and his platoon, to understand why he was driving around the lake, Norman, and how he was going to tell the story to the guy at Mamma’s Burgers, Norman and the silver star.

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