The things they carried outline. The Things They Carried 2023-01-02

The things they carried outline Rating: 7,7/10 1766 reviews

The Things They Carried is a collection of interconnected short stories written by Tim O'Brien, first published in 1990. The book is set during the Vietnam War and explores the experiences of soldiers on the front lines as well as their struggles with trauma, loss, and the complexities of war.

One of the central themes in The Things They Carried is the weight of the physical and emotional baggage that the soldiers carry with them. This includes the various objects that they carry in their packs, such as weapons, ammunition, and personal items, as well as the memories and experiences of war that weigh on their minds and hearts.

The soldiers in The Things They Carried carry a range of objects that reflect their individual identities and experiences. For example, some soldiers carry mementos of home, such as photographs or letters, while others carry objects that are essential for their survival, such as rations or medical supplies. In addition to these physical objects, the soldiers also carry their own internal baggage, including their fears, doubts, and memories of the war.

One of the key ways that O'Brien explores the theme of the things they carried is through the use of magical realism. Throughout the book, he includes stories that blur the line between reality and fantasy, creating a sense of the surreal and the uncanny. For example, the soldiers in The Things They Carried often carry objects that are imbued with symbolic meaning, such as a childhood teddy bear or a good luck charm. These objects serve as talismans, offering the soldiers a sense of comfort and protection in the face of the dangers and uncertainties of war.

Another important theme in The Things They Carried is the impact of war on the soldiers' relationships with one another. Many of the soldiers form close bonds with their comrades, relying on each other for support and comfort in the face of the horrors of war. However, these relationships are often strained by the trauma and loss that they experience, leading to conflicts and misunderstandings.

In conclusion, The Things They Carried is a powerful and moving exploration of the human cost of war. Through the stories of the soldiers and the things they carried, O'Brien offers a poignant meditation on the weight of the physical and emotional baggage that soldiers carry with them, and the enduring impact of war on their lives.

The Things They Carried: Summary & Analysis

the things they carried outline

He would shut down the daydreams. They laughed and held on tight, feeling the cold slap of wind and altitude, soaring, thinking It's over, I'm gone! He was now determined to perform his duties firmly and without negligence. So why not shut the fuck up? The details of what each man carries are funneled through the memory of this narrator. He can't kill Strunk, he has no one to target, so he uses the only weapon he has and shoots into the sky because he can shoot nowhere else. In its intransitive form, to hump meant to walk, or to march, but it implied burdens far beyond the intransitive.

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The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien Plot Summary

the things they carried outline

Kiowa carried his grandfather's feathered hatchet. He went from Vietnam to graduate school, and never really talked about his experiences in the war—except for in his writing. No clouds or birds or people. They carry Vietnam itself, in the heavy weather and the dusty soil. They died so as not to die of embarrassment.

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The Things They Carried Chapter Summaries

the things they carried outline

It can come from a fact, like Kiowa's death, and the story can spur on with details that are fictional to help the reader understand. He remembers how Kiowa died daily. Lemon was smiling and talking to Kiley one second and was blown into a tree the next. He was a soldier, after all. The different items introduce the characters that will fill the entire collection. Khe Sahn was thought of as an important strategic location for both the Americans and the North Vietnamese. Ted Lavender popped a tranquilizer and went off to pee.

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The Things They Carried: Important Quotes Explained

the things they carried outline

On the march, through the hot days of early April, he carried the pebble in his mouth, turning it with his tongue, tasting sea salt and moisture. They make a pact and sign it that reads one is obligated to kill the other if one is harmed so badly in battle that they would be wheelchair bound. He writes to Kiowa's father while the others search for the body - as usual, Azar jokes around at first. While he believes that the war is morally wrong and politically unjustified, he ultimately succumbs to his fear of how he would be perceived by his peers and goes to Vietnam—a decision which he, ironically, looks back on as having been the cowardly one. On April 16, when Lee Strunk drew the number 17, he laughed and muttered something and went down quickly. The second time, he is treated by Kiley's replacement, Bobby Jorgenson; Jorgenson is incompetent, and nearly kills O'Brien. Lieutenant Cross carried his good-luck pebble.

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The Things They Carried “The Things They Carried” Summary & Analysis

the things they carried outline

You would imagine that if a character that is going to die right off the book would forever be forgotten but on the contrary he seemed to be with them all the way till the end of the war. Lieutenant Cross nodded and closed his eyes while the others clapped Strunk on the back and made jokes about rising from the dead. At first Dobbins was made fun of, but then the platoon started to believe in the power of the stockings because Dobbins was never hurt in battle, even when he was standing in open fire and stepped on a mine that didn't go off. She was an English major at Mount Sebastian, and she wrote beautifully about her professors and roommates and midterm exams, about her respect for Chaucer and her great affection for Virginia Woolf. They try to terrify Jorgensen one night by pretending to be the enemy, but Jorgenson doesn't scare and O'Brien is forced to let go of his grudge when they agree they're even. Before they die, though, one of the dead turns to the man who jumped on the grenade and asks him why he jumped.

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The Things They Carried Love Summary & Analysis

the things they carried outline

Lee Strunk carried his slingshot; ammo, he claimed, would never be a problem. However, he begs Dave not to kill him. He had difficulty keeping his attention on the war. You want to talk, talk. O'Brien's daughter, Kathleen, says he should stop writing so many war stories.

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The Things They Carried: Full Book Summary

the things they carried outline

Kiowa's high esteem for Cross and the reader's view of Cross from Cross' perspective are contrasted to show how differently each soldier perceived the other. One day, when the company outside the Than Khe area is on a mission to destroy tunnel complexes, Cross imagines the tunnels collapsing on him and Martha. What Jensen did, and what was not possible in the larger war, was to find a way to end the cycle. The others would draw numbers. They were not love letters, but Lieutenant Cross was hoping, so he kept them folded in plastic at the bottom of his rucksack. O'Brien's attention to sensory detail also supports this primary objective of evoking a real response in the reader.

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The Things They Carried Enemies Summary & Analysis

the things they carried outline

Lieutenant Jimmy Cross blames himself for Ted Lavender's death because he loves Martha so much that he's been preoccupied. As a big man, therefore a machine gunner , Henry Dobbins carried the M-60 , which weighed 23 pounds unloaded, but which was almost always loaded. To that memory is also added the burden of grief and guilt. Trouble, he thought—a cave-in maybe. Claymore antipersonnel mine An antipersonnel mine that scatters shrapnel in a particular, often fan-shaped, area when it explodes. Rat Kiley carries comic books.

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The Things They Carried: Themes—The 4 Most Important Points

the things they carried outline

O'Brien says that perhaps in any other place it would have ended there, but because this was Vietnam where everyone had a gun, Dave Jensen became paranoid that Strunk would get his revenge. Analysis Even as O'Brien opens The Things They Carried, he sets forth the novel's primary themes of memory and imagination and the opportunity for mental escape that these powers offer. Cross as the carrier of these possessions as well as of his love for Martha. O'Brien says he must write stories because that's all that's left when memory is gone. They carried the standard fatigue jackets and trousers.

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