In the story “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, it is evident the lack of cohesion and order present in Vietnam during the war. The author, Tim O’Brien, uses himself as a symbol to describe the inefficient leaders present as men were self centered and obscure in their plans.These qualities extend to highlight the confused and indecisive men who led. Through the use of imagery, short sentences and caesura O’Brien has artistically brought out descriptions of an ineffective leader. In the chapter, “On the Rainy River”, the phrase of “Canada printing itself out[O’Brien 42]” creates a very powerful and impactful image in the reader’s minds as the word “printing” relates to a printer. During the time of publication of this book, the dot-matrix