The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

In the book The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien there were many characters that could be considered a “lead character” but by far First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross was the character who demonstrated an enormous amount of leadership, courage, and determination. Throughout the story it is difficult to see where First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross gathers his strength from. In the beginning of the short story, he seems very strong but towards the end of the story he also seems to still be gathering strength from somewhere. Due to Cross having immense feelings and connections to the world outside of the war, he is unable to focus on his men and his surroundings. So much so that he has a man killed on his watch, to which he feels undeniable grief and responsibility towards. Martha was his link to helping him stay out of the war, mentally and emotionally. All of his emotions and thoughts lay with her, lay with all she symbolized of leaving behind and all he wanted to return home to. That is why throughout the story “Martha never mentioned the war, except to say, Jimmy take care of yourself.” was so important and valid. That statement all throughout the book showed she was not involved in the war, in his hardships across seas, just in seeing his was safe in what he was doing. She helped and hindered his day to day duties.

Fear is also something that is seen on almost every page of this story, constantly haunting the mind of all the men depicted. The way First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross handles his fear is by deciding not to resort to any other thoughts than Martha, that is until Ted Lavender dies, boom-down, and he can think of nothing but burning his photos and letters of Martha and focusing on leading his men, not caring or getting attached, being tough but knowing what the result would be. The courage he displays throughout these passages shows how Cross had to have self-confidence, mental and physical strength, and determination to be able to phantom leading his men the way he did. His grief that was shown through tears and rash decisions after Lavender died, showed how he handled his fear, irrationally to some but successful in his own eyes, which was the hardship he had to overcome: the fear that lay within him. In my own opinion First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross was not as successful as he could have been, considering after he burned Martha’s letters and photographs, he was weaker than before he had done so. Even though the action was very symbolic in him trying to rid himself of her, and trying to burn away his guilt and blame for Ted Lavender’s killing. Cross had attempted to get rid of Martha but as many times as he had focused on all he had of her, she was etched into his memory, his conscious so by burning “her” away, I saw him doing no more good to himself as leaving this wrapped up in plastic at the bottom of his rucksack. Though he claimed to only think of her and think that she belonged elsewhere, though he sought to perform his duties firmly, he could have gone about it differently. He may have appeared to be successful in his thought process but it’s as if you must feel what he is feeling to know, deep down his was still continually burdened. One universal theme that appears throughout this short story is bravery, which just so happens to be mixed in with cowardice. Not just with First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross but with his men wanting to appear far braver than they actually are, for fear of looking cowardly in front of their fellow soldiers. It is suggested that none of them are in fact brave but they are in fact just confused about what bravery really is. All men make themselves out to be less afraid of what they are facing than they truly are, by cracking jokes at what was just thrown at them or smoking dope to soothe their worries and distress. Bravery is something we are all searching for but are able to attain, even if others look at us to be brave or courageous. The characters from The Things They Carried consistently worry and stress over weakness, so much so that I would even call it an obsession. No matter how courageous or brave the characters/soldiers in this book may seem, in our eyes, they will never be courageous or brave enough for us, to satisfy our want or idealistic mindset, which I also feel is a universal thought. Another universal theme shown throughout the book are the physical and emotional hardships that all the soldiers are put through. Obviously the soldiers carry physical burdens because of all their necessities plus all of the things they carry for comfort, such as gum, comic books, photographs and letters, or lucky charms. But there are also the emotional burdens that go along with that as well which may seem to weigh more than that of the physical items, theoretically speaking. Emotions consisting of grief, fear, love and longing for comfort. Whether it be said or not, all soldiers feel vulnerability they are all unwilling to show or fold to. The soldiers who make it home after the war will continue to be burdened by the psychological hardships they endured, and will define who they are as men, living out their remaining years trying to be as civilized as possible, being sons, fathers or husbands. The ones who make it to that point will be reminded everyday of guilt and confusion, in reference to their journey through the war. The ones closest to them will try to assist them but happy as they may be for their loved ones to come home, they won’t be returned to whom they once knew. They’ll be shown a cold, uncivilized being, who may or may not know how to love anymore, despite how long they have been craving to come home. So may they be out of the war, the war may never leave them free.