English 111 December 8‚ 2013 Lieutenant Jimmy Cross In the continuous mix of gruesome and heart wrenching but yet still enticing short stories and war memories The Things they Carried byTim O’Brian leads us to fall in love and form a bond with one of the main characters in the book Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. Tim O’Brian faces Jimmy Cross with the constant struggle of surviving while fighting in Vietnam. While trying to maintain his sanity‚ Jimmy"s inner struggle is between his old self and
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during the Vietnam War. In this story we are introduced to First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross and his platoon. They all differ in age and ethnicity‚ and have different views on the Vietnam War. One thing that they all have in common is that they bear the weight of their country on their back‚ but they also have different emotions weighing on their hearts at the same time. We see three different sides to Lieutenant Jimmy Cross‚ the soldier‚ the love stricken man and the leader that has learned a valuable
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unrealistic when the reader has not experienced anything of the sort. In the story "The Things They Carried" Tim O’Brien tells war stories through a character named Jimmy Cross. With the detail O’Brien uses in his book he must have experienced these events to be able to describe them in such a fashion. The many friendships and personal relationships Jimmy had could have just been O’Brien’s platoon he served with and actual girlfriend‚ possibly with different names. All of the feelings and emotions of a person
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“The Things They Carried” is a story about what is most important to a soldier‚ practical and emotional. Jimmy Cross tells how pictures‚ letters‚ bibles‚ and journals were just as important as guns‚ medical supplies‚ and radio contact. A soldier couldn’t do what he does without some ties to real life‚ beyond the war. As Jimmy Cross said‚ “It wasn’t cruelty‚ just stage presence. They were actors and the war came at them in 3-D.” The letters and pictures helped them stay grounded‚ a hope for a life
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have been very beneficial to Jimmy Cross in Tim O’Brien’s‚ The Things They Carried. Although he was a symbol of Jesus Christ‚ Cross knew he could have been a better leader‚ especially with how absorbed he was in his love‚ Martha. By burning his letters and photographs of Martha‚ though‚ Jimmy Cross came to terms with a reconciliation emphasized by the themes there is an abiding concern with the question of battlefield courage and love overrules war. To begin‚ Jimmy Cross had a spiritual reassessment
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“The Things They Carried” is about the thoughts and actions of Jimmy Cross‚ a lieutenant of an Army unit on active combat duty in the Vietnam War. Lt. Cross is worried by thoughts of Martha‚ a young woman he dated before he joined the Army. He thinks about letters she wrote him‚ whether or not she is a virgin. And about how much he loves her and wants her to love him. Her letters do not indicate that she feels the same way. The narrator lists things that the soldiers carry with them‚ both tangible
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things they carried on them. He also shows that some personalities aren’t fit for war‚ you need to be strong. Throughout the story‚ he builds the characters personalities‚ and shows us who these people are‚ through their luggage. The main character‚ Jimmy Cross‚ is the platoon’s leader. He is ordered to watch over everyone. Kiowa‚ a member of the platoon‚ is a very religious American Indian and is seen often in the story. Ted Lavender is recurrent throughout the story in Jimmy’s mind. At the end of the
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perfectly embodies the view Tim O’Brien has on courage‚ as he eloquently demonstrates in his book The Things They Carried. Although all the characters of this novel display O’Brien’s point of view‚ the three shining examples of this are Norman Bowker‚ Jimmy Cross‚ and Tim O’Brien himself. Tim O’Brien is fairly conscious of the difference between cowardice and bravery. To him‚ courage is not fulfilling what is socially accepted‚ but continuing to uphold one’s own morals even against adversity. His feelings
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a first glance‚ they can actually be seen as love stories because of the emotional connection each character has with each other. First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is a good example of how the stories in The Things They Carried are love stories. Lieutenant Cross loved a girl named Martha and the chapter ¨Love¨ is based on his love for her. Jimmy Cross also has emotional ties to the soldiers in his squad. When one of his soldiers‚ Tim Lavender‚ takes a bullet in the head and dies the Lieutenant can’t
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under a communist government. The United States tried to prevent the spread of communism. What Jimmy Cross‚ Ted Lavender‚ and Kiowa carry is decided by their fears‚ homesickness‚ or desperate need of distraction from the war. The First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carries many things‚ but‚ most importantly‚ he carries the responsibilities of the other men. “Lieutenant Cross carries two photographs of Martha” (98). Carrying these things makes him fantasize about her all day‚ causing him to feel like it
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