The Things They Carried‚ written by Tim O’brien is a novel‚ which depicts the Vietnamese war‚ specifically experiences of the soldiers during and after the war. Youth is portrayed in the novel as a significant factor‚ which influences not only the idea represented in the novel but also the author himself. Although this is no explicitly stated throughout the book‚ there are a couple of characters that are more significant to Tim O’brien than others. These characters are Linda and Kathleen. By analyzing
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One of the main themes of the novel is the allure of war. This trope‚ common in war literature‚ is made more complex here as O’Brien adds the layers of a Conrad-esque “heart of darkness” fascination in the character of Mary Anne. The seductive allure of war is inextricably linked to the tendencies of human nature in O’Brien’s novel. War‚ more specifically the act of killing‚ acts as a catalyst for some individuals‚ causing them to become primal versions of themselves‚ to become less human‚ to
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To be raised in a barn often means you lack the mannerisms deemed acceptable by society. To be raised by the circus means your mannerisms are only slightly more acceptable than one who was raised in a barn. Riley’s situation was the later. The story begins when two lovers Kwangsoo and Sohee Ahn had ran away from Genao to Reno in hopes to start a new life together. Trouble was to arise as Kwangsoo neglected to tell Sohee his grave secret. Fearing for the fate his child ‚ Kwangsoo tried to explain
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plants the seeds of terror in the young man by imposing him his radical‚ yet catchy theories of life. In the beginning of the book‚ when he meets Dorian‚ he tells him "[An influenced person’s] virtues are not real to him. His sins‚ if there are such things as sins‚ are borrowed. As Lady Narborough notes to Dorian‚ there is little (if any) distinction between ethics and appearance: “you are made to be good—you look so good.” Lord Henry‚ his corrupter. The Supremacy of Youth and Beauty
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slang‚ O’Brien doesn’t make the conversation sound formal. He avoids making the conversation sound scripted. Journal Entry #18 A.) Simile‚ page 151. “Her eyes were as fluffy and airy-light as cotton candy.” B.) A simile is a comparison of two things using the words ‘as’ and ‘like.’ Here‚ the author is comparing the appearance of cotton candy and eyes. C.) O’Brien compares the fluffiness and airy-light appearance of cotton candy to the subject’s eyes. By doing so‚ he illustrates to his audience
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and Emotional Burdens In The Things They Carried‚ O ’Brien talks about multiple different things that the men at war carry. They take things with them that soldiers always have like guns‚ bags‚ grenades‚ ammo‚ food‚ water‚ and things like that‚ but they also carry personal items like Kiowa ’s Bible and moccasins‚ or Jensen ’s vitamins. The men however‚ have more than just physical items. They have things that always stay with them like emotional and figurative things. Throughout the novel‚ O ’Brien
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Civil War General Sherman once said‚ “War is hell.” He was right. In the short story “The Things They Carried‚” Tim O’Brien shows us the hell that our soldiers suffered. The narrator shows us a captivating‚ and up-close story about our soldiers in the Vietnam War. While the title relates to the story about things carried‚ but the soldiers carry more than just the physical burdens-in many cases‚ they are weighed down by emotional baggage. The emotional baggage that lies heavy in their hearts
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The Things They Carried‚ by Tim O’Brien All of the men from Tim O’Brien’s book "The Things They Carried" carried physical items and unresolved emotional baggage. The men held onto the physical items and inside held the feelings to help them cope with and escape from the Vietnam war. However‚ after the war‚ they carried memories and scars that reminded them of and brought them back to Vietnam. In the first chapter of the book‚ O’Brien discusses the physical items the men carry with them.
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O’Brien’s novel‚ The Things They Carried‚ paints a vague mental image of people carrying something – an image that is not yet complete for the reader to grasp the purpose of the novel. ‘Things’ are often assumed to be physical‚ in this novel‚ the ‘things’ that the soldiers carried were the mental burdens during and after the Vietnam War. Through the use of narratives of the different soldiers‚ O’Brien is able to follow each characters physical and mental weight that they carried. The
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Tim O’Brien’s The Things they carried In-class writing assignment War has always been something that seemed pointless to me; it seemed like violence with no other purpose but to harm people. I felt sorry for the people who had to go to war‚ for the people who died‚ and for people who could never go back to normal after a war ended‚ because of the mental or physical impact it had on them. Howard told us his story‚ his opinion about war‚ and the book “The Things they carried”. He changed my way
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