The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, was not just about the physical things that each soldier carried in their pack, but also the emotional weight of loved ones, fears, and death that they have witnessed. O’Brien used details about each item the soldiers carried, especially the weight. By letting the reader know how much physical weight the soldier was carrying, it allowed them to indirectly experience the hardship of marching days on end, carrying their gear. Along with the physical weight, each
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In a chapter Tim O'Brien book, "The Things They Carried", he emphasizes how a war story should not leave the reader uplifted, since all of them are gruesome. Tim tells a story of a man named Bob Kiley losing his best friend, Curt Lemon. The chapter starts off by Bob writing a heartfelt letter to Curt's sister, and not getting a response from "the dumb cooze." Calling her this mean name already shows us how important every small actions means to a solider who has returned from war. Tim then goes into
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Tim O’Brien’s “How to Tell a True War Story” starts with the brief tongue-in-cheek statement, “this is true.” While most authors seek to build credibility with their reader, O’Brien actively undermines his own trustworthiness in order to convey the skepticism with which he believes audiences should treat all ‘true’ war stories. His most effective strategy for doing so is the interweaving of a potentially fictitious narrative within a formal essay, further developing “How to Tell a True War Story’s”
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The Root of Personas Most people are familiar with the phrase “living a double life”. However, many do not understand the psychological aspect behind the idiom. A separate lifestyle, or a persona, is very much akin to a mask. It hides the embarrassing moments and qualities of one’s life. But what spurs these psychological masks to be created? Personas are ultimately formed to avoid turmoil. Turmoil varies from person to person. For some individuals, turmoil can be as simple as failing
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In the society, all people have different minds and actions. What are the factors affect on deciding their behaviors? One saying that people are different because they all have different personalities, emotions and experiences upon their lives. What’s more, the massive environment also plays a big role in all the parts of individuals’ lives. In a greater environment, people are being influenced by environment in the different parts. As a response, people would think or act due to the context. Malcolm
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The woman that Cross is in love with is named Martha. She's barely a junior from Mount Sebastian College in New Jersey. Although he is madly in love with her, Martha doesn't return the feelings back for him. This one-sided love causes him to ponder and lose focus of what is really important, keeping himself and his troops alive and well. As he is lying in his foxhole, he looks at pictures of Martha; he can't help to feel, "More than anything, he wanted Martha to love him as he loved her " As shown
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In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien uses indirect characterization to shine a light on the way soldiers view the idea of bravery in the Vietnam War. In the chapters “The Things They Carried,” and “Speaking of Courage,” the author describes how the soldiers had come to fear the idea of not being courageous, perhaps because, if one was not brave enough, they would perish in the strange and foreign land of Vietnam. However, a more plausible reason for them acting in this manner could be because
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also because one may think that being a soldier is the ultimate act of bravery. Tim O’Brien, the author of The Things They Carried, refutes this idea however, stating “I was a coward. I went to war.” O’Brien, a Vietnam War veteran, discusses his moral dilemma concerning whether or not to fight in the war in the story On the Rainy River. After deliberating with himself for the sixth day at the Tip Top Lodge, O’Brien finally comes to a conclusion, stating “I would go to war-I would kill and maybe
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Dani Kaiser December 3, 2015 3rd period Sadness and Tragedy in Antigone and The Things They Carried Tinged with sadness and tragedy, both Antigone by Sophocles and The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien show reactions of characters to tragedies. These great moments of sadness in both books reveal the inner traits of many characters. In Antigone, Antigone reacts to her tragic life. In The Things They Carried, supporting character Mary Anne Bell reacts to the tragedy of war. The way the aforementioned
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card was often a young man’s biggest nightmare. For some, the most appealing choice was to register as a Conscientious Objector, as seen in the case of Thom Nickels. Others fled to Canada, expecting to never be able to return to the United States. Tim O’Brien, author of The Things They Carried, tried this tactic only to find that he couldn’t convince himself to follow through with it. One more choice was to go to jail for two years for refusal to go to war when drafted. Of course, young men could simply
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