Truth and Memory in the Things They Carried
Tim O'Brien's novel, The Things They Carried, is more than a novel because it allows the reader to experience the Vietnam War in a personal way and it allows O'Brien the opportunity to bring closure to the entire war experience. Throughout the novel, O'Brien reminds readers he is telling a story and that the story may or may not be fiction. The point of telling stories is not simply to make stories up but to create a passage to peace. O'Brien accomplishes this task with the novel because he allows stories to shape his life and his hope rather than break his spirit. O'Brien proves a good story is a combination of writing well and remembering better.
The Things They Carried is a war novel authenticated through O'Brien's experiences. O'Brien does not simply want to tell Vietnam War Stories, he wants to get something else out of the writing endeavor. Doing so means letting go of all preconceived notions about writing, war, and telling stories. When explaining this process, O'Brien stresses the significance of what the story attempts to say rather than if the story is fact or fiction. O'Brien never wants the reader to forget his wartime experience was ambiguous and as a result it is, "safe to say that in a true war story nothing is...
Because Salinger allows him to stay in that world, we can cling to Holden as a pleasant memory. The Catcher in the Rye is told from Holden's perspective and this aspect of the novel allows it to remain innocent and suspended in time, so to speak. Holden is like Peter Pan in that he does not wantr to grow up but he is facing the glorious future that includes his
While he pretended, she was "elusive on the matter of love" (1). While she might have signed her letters with love, Jimmy "knew better" (2) but the idea made him feel better so he allowed himself the luxury of living in the fantasy. Jimmy's guilt for Ted's death was "like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war" (16). Jimmy must work through this emotion, which
" (O'Brien, Chapter 15, pg. 143) Norman Bowker is a disillusioned person because he feels that his service in the war has been meaningless. The quote speaks a lot about what he feels about the people of his town. He has just returned from his tour of duty in Vietnam where he witnessed a lot of bloodshed and violence, which has left deep wounds in his soul. Bowker has gone through
The audience has the feeling that O'Brian is presenting them with significant and personal stories from his life. This slowly but surely makes readers feel that they too are connected to the war and to the narrator. It sometimes seems that O'Brian also addresses present day issues in the book, not just happenings from the war. The bond between him and the audience is strengthened through this technique because people
I can make myself feel again (O'Brien, p. 180). And, through story truth, what the story is able to do for O'Brien, it becomes able also to do for the reader. In "The Lives of the Dead," O'Brien further elaborates on his need for stories universally. Through make-believe -- imagination, stories, fiction -- O'Brien finds that he can not only resurrect the dead but also lay a barrier between himself and
It is very difficult to reach a conclusion regarding "The Things They Carried" and the purpose for which O'Brien wrote it. While a first look on the collection of books is probable to provide someone with the feeling that it is easy to read and does not involve a lot of strong feelings, the truth is that this is what the writer intended it to look like. Not only is
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