Relationship Between 'Friends And Enemies'

In The Things They Carried, written by Tim O’Brien, there are two brief sections about the acquaintanceship between Lee Strunk and Dave Jensen. The chapter “Enemies” demonstrates this first, it mentions an instance that breaks the wall of trust between the two soldiers. The next chapter, “Friends,” illustrates the two men learning to lean on each other for assurance. Together, “Friends” and “Enemies,” stand to provide an accurate depiction of the foolishness of war. The battlefield is a place where many soldiers find out who their real friends are. “Enemies” references the day that Strunk and Jensen had conflict over a missing jackknife. The two ended up throwing punches at each other and Lee Strunk walked away with a broken nose. Knowing
Strunk and Jensen were working on building up the trust they had for one another when they made an alliance that if either one was hurt during battle the other one would find a way to stop him from suffering. In the fall, part of Strunk’s leg was blown off after he stepped on a “rigged mortar round” (p. 62). When Strunk woke up and saw Jensen, he thought about the pact between the two and made Jensen promise not to kill him. Strunk said, “But you got to promise. Swear it to me – swear you won’t kill me.” Jensen nodded and said “I swear,” (p. 63). Come to find out, Strunk died a little later on, which was a relief for Jensen. “Friends” depicts how the two enemies relied on each other for assurance and stayed faithful to the understanding between them. Both chapters show irony within their titles. “Enemies” is typically used when referring to two people or groups on opposing sides. In this novel, it is used amongst two men fighting in the same platoon. “Friends” is ironic because, Strunk and Jensen made a pact of what to do if one of them was seriously injured while on duty, both of the friends broke the pact. Strunk made Jensen promise not to kill him, which was breaking the pact, but the irony is that he ended up dying