Soldiers In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

Everyone goes through struggles in their life. Whether it’s being a part of a dysfunctional family or witnessing the terrors of war, people all live through a time in their life when they find themselves surrounded by unpleasant circumstances. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien shares the stories of soldiers in the Vietnam War and the mountains they faced. No matter what war someone fought in, or what kind of soldier they were, everyone carried something. The idea of “carrying baggage” is a way to show each soldier’s internal problems and real-life giants. The Things They Carried shows an overall theme of soldiers carrying physical and emotional baggage through the war.

Throughout the book, Tim O’Brien vividly describes some of the literal

Physically, he carried the basic necessities of any soldier, with standard weapons and supplies. O’Brien proudly displayed the honor of being a soldier on the outside, but underneath his young soldier composure, he struggled with the fear of shame and unacceptance. O’Brien absolutely despised the war, saying that he, “...feared exile. I was afraid of walking away from my own life… I feared losing the respect of my parents” (O’Brien 45). O’Brien feared being seen as coward by his community and always wanted to be socially accepted. Later on in the war, when O’Brien was enjoying his time off from fighting, he felt betrayed by his friends because they had bonded together through the war that he was missing out on. O’Brien never wanted to seem like an outsider, and so fear of being different controlled his life. Unlike Tim O’Brien, Lloyd Bunting, who was a soldier during Pearl Harbor, enjoyed the war. He could not wait and immediately decided that he would join the war after two years of attending school at Yale University. Bunting always seemed optimistic and loved the thrilling experience of being at war. Each soldier is different in their opinion of the war. Some let shame drive them into the war, and others made the

Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carried a map and compass, which symbolized his responsibility of leading his men. Cross also brought the desire for love and a normal life, wherever he went, in the form of letters and pictures from a girl named Martha. The letters were his way of escape from the pressure of leading his battalion. The heaviest baggage Cross carried, though, was grief. When Ted Lavender was shot and killed, Cross had been day-dreaming of Martha, instead on the lookout for danger. Cross was forever changed because of Lavender’s death. While grieving, Cross admitted 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… for the rest of the war” (O’Brien 16). Immediately after Lavender’s death, Cross destroyed every trace of Martha and swore to himself that nothing would distract him from his duty. Guilt was Jimmy Cross’s toughest baggage that followed him through war and continued to haunt him for the rest of his