In several stories from The Things They Carried‚ by Tim O’Brien deals with the way that American soldiers of the Vietnam War related to being "in country‚" or out of their own country and halfway across the world. O’Brien creates the concept that Vietnam‚ and the war there‚ is of "another world" throughout his stories. None of the soldiers he writes about feel at home in Vietnam‚ and none of them successfully adapt emotionally to being so far from home. O’Brien subtly introduces the concept of
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an example of a simile. Similes use like and as to make explicit comparisons between unlike things‚ such as eyes and stars. Metaphor Her eyes were pools of liquid light. Again‚ her eyes are literally human eyes. Figuratively‚ they are being compared to pools of liquid light. However‚ the comparison is implied‚ not stated. This is an example of a metaphor. Unlike similes‚ metaphors compare unlike things without explicitly stating the comparison with “like” or “as.” Personification Her eyes followed
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In the novel The Things They Carried‚ author Tim O’Brien offers the “happy ending” described by Fay Weldon through his own “spiritual reassessment and moral reconciliation.” While the novel itself is not a series of happy memories or events‚ the telling of them allows the author to come to terms with the loss of his innocence and his own limitations. As the author closes‚ he finally concludes that while his war-time experiences change him from the person he once was‚ telling stories is the way he
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Charlie was a molestation victim as a child‚ a fact he repressed until urged to enter into a sexual situation he could not deal with. While his breakdown provides the epilogue for the book and places him into a mental hospital‚ he comes out of the whole thing as a supposed fuller individual who is more self actualized than he would have been without realizing the sexual trauma of his youth or‚ more drastically‚
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Martha was Jimmy Cross’ first “love”. He was obsessed with her even though she only thought of him as a friend. They wrote each other letters in a friendly way but Jimmy Cross thought of it as more than that. “He would sometimes taste the envelopes flaps‚ knowing her tongue had been there… More than anything he wanted Martha to love him as he loved her‚ but the letters were mostly chatty‚ elusive on the matter of love.” (1) Linda was O’Brien’s childhood love. She died at the age of nine because
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How was your understanding of cultural and contextual consideration of the work developed through the interactive oral? Through this discussion‚ I noticed how easy it was to relate to the social and cultural context issues that the soldiers went through in this book. For example‚ when Tim did not want to go to war and almost fled to Canada he realized that he rather go to war and die before he gets talked about by his community. This shows how far a person will go to prevent being embarrassed
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Shame is a reoccuring theme throughout The Things They Carried. Shame makes people do things they don’t want to do just so they can get rid of the fear of shame. It drove soldiers to do acts they would’ve never done. Many of the characters have shame as a primary motivator. It leads them to war and it keeps them there. It is the one thing that keeps them from shooting themselves in the foot so that they would be discharged from the army or some similar such act. But some characters‚ like Curt Lemon
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community. How does shame affect and play a role in the life of the soldiers in The Things They Carried? The Things They Carried is a book set in Massachusetts but the core of the book is based in Vietnam. A group of Soldiers go to war and Tim O’Brien decides to document the true effects of war but beneath his words‚ there were a lot of factors and double meaning to them. The motif ‘Shame” played a huge part in every character in this book as it was a trait they all shared in common Shame in this context
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October 1st 2012 The Things They Carried Close Reading p. 1-26 - Pages 3 and 4: So many items being carried… what is the purpose? Quote(s): “Kiowa also carried his grandmothers distrust for the white man…” (Pg. 3) “…The poncho weighed almost 2 pounds‚ but it was worth every ounce” (pg. 3) Meaningful words/ phrases: pounds‚ weighed‚ grunts‚ Kodacolor‚ Bonnie and Clyde Overall meaning/ author’s purpose: The soldiers do not only carry material goods‚ they also carry emotions. Such is Kiowa’s
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lives for the sake of not being titled as cowards. Some get to fight another day‚ some don’t‚ others get captured and become prisoners or hostages. But one thing is certain‚ for those who have experienced war know first hand that it has the power to change you as a person. In the short stories “Guests of the Nation“ and “The Things They Carried‚” authors Frank O’Connor and Tim O’Brien share the same central idea of the horrible effects of war. Both stories are about a young male soldier who faces
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