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The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien: An Analysis

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Cowardice is defined as a ‘lack of bravery,’ but in what ways can a person exhibit cowardice? Fighting in a war, especially for a cause that one believes in, is a strong show of bravery. Speaking up against and resisting a war that one does not believe in could also be considered bravery. Men who fought in a war they did not believe in simply because they were told to, exhibit cowardice. Those who showed a lack of bravery during the Vietnam War were those who did not take a stance for what they believed in. Draft Dodging during the Vietnam War was not an act of cowardice, but rather an act of bravery to take a stance against something that does not align with your beliefs. The war in Vietnam was brutal and gruesome, leaving many American soldiers …show more content…

The book explores many of the platoon members' experiences in Vietnam and what they carry with them throughout their experiences. O’Brien gives a gruesome and realistic glimpse into what the reality of fighting in this war was. He realistically conveys how the members of the platoon felt, “Their principles were on their feet. Their calculations were a biological. They had no sense of mission” (O’Brien 14). While fighting in this war, these men felt that they had a lack of purpose. They had to find motivation in souvenirs they had brought from home and letters. This caused these men to blindly fight out of fear, rather than for a cause that they strongly believed in, “Men Killed and died because they were embarrassed not to” (O’Brien 20). These men followed orders that violated their morals, they all felt that they could not retaliate to the orders they were given out of fear. The soldiers who fought in the Vietnam War were strong, but the majority of them were fighting a battle they did not believe in. Many men knew the Vietnam War was not a fight they could get behind. These men knew they could not fight for something they so heavily

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