The Things They Carried

1. The Things They Carried The Nature of Storytelling and the Subjectivity of What is “True”

2. TTTC Big Questions • What does each soldier “carry”, literally and figuratively? • What is the nature of truth? • What is the function of storytelling? • How does the use of language and rhetorical strategy add richness and meaning to this work?

3. Context: The Vietnam War • Those against the draft • Guerillas are not an immediate threat to US • If US were threatened, no need for draft- Americans would volunteer • “…millions upon millions drafted to kill and be killed”: violation of American Liberties • Unjust- deferment program forces poor and African American men into combat; privileged avoid war

4. Context (con’t) • Those Who Support The Draft • Necessary to defeat communism, and therefore whole Cold War • S. Vietnams falls? All will fall • Draft is national defense • Deferment encourages men to seek and education and enter careers • Honor and respect for those who enter military

5. Chapter 1: The Things They Carried • Soldiers introduced and “what they carry” mentioned: both physically and mentally • They carried: • “terrible power” (7) • “ghosts” (9) • “Hate”( 3) • Dobbins sees “no moral” in the war(13) • Lieutenant Cross is hardened by the war • Blunt, straightforward tone made known; Read pages 20-21 for thematic analysis

6. Chapter 2: “Love” • Flash forward to years later • Jimmy Cross admits guilt for Lavender’s death • Ironically have a lighthearted conversation about the love he had for Martha that never manifested • Tim O’Brien said he would not mention Lavender- he lied; was it worth it? Why would he mentioned that he lied?

7. Chapter 3: “Spin” • Mitchell Sanders upset about the draft • The game of checkers mentioned as good because “There were rules”. • Discusses that war was not all bad (34): paradox jux. of absolute peace with absolute frenzy and choas • Poppa-san helped them across the mine fields and they learned to love him • The boredom of war noted • O’Brien discusses his own writing and the “remembering” always • “remembering makes it now”; stories are important

8. Chapter 4: “On A Rainy River” • Personal confession • He admits: “I was no soldier” (39-41 rhet. analysis); he “…felt paralyzed”(41) • He “…felt a sickness inside [him]. Real disease.” (43) • Drives to Canada and contemplates defecting • Ends up on Rainy river, meets Elroy who “knew” but did not talk about it; displayed “ferocious silence” (47) • He felt a “Hot, stupid shame.” (49) • Read 54-57: deliberation on the river and then “he submitted” (57) • He acquiesces: “:I was a coward. I went to the war. “ (58)

9. Chapter 5: “Enemies” • Fighting two wars: • Dave Jenson accuses Strunk of stealing his jackknife • Reacts I anger; Breaks his nose • Becomes paranoid that retaliation would be worse • Broke his own nose: WHY?

10. Chapter 6: “Friends” • Jenson and Strunk not “instant buddies” bu they learned to trust each other • Made a promise to put each other out of misery if ever dilapidated due to war • Strunk stepped on a mine and lost his leg; Jenson had a choice to make • Ironically Jenson was “relieved…of an enormous weight”- What weight?

11. Chapter 7: “How To Tell A True War Story” • A war story is : • “never moral” (65); • Harsh and indefinable • “always embarrassing”; • “cannot be believed” (68-74) • “the crazy stuff is true and the normal stuff isn’t” • Nam talks • Nobody listens; nobody hears nothin • “war is hell” (76) • Last sentence • “…in a true war story, nothing is ever absolutely true” (78) *******

12. Chapter 8: “The Dentist” • Curt Lemon was embarrassed at fainting over tooth being pulled out • Vulnerable and human • Not a “man” • Had dentist pull out a perfectly good tooth- why?

13. Chapter 9: “Sweetheart of Song Tra Bong” • War can quickly change someone • Rat Kiley would tell a story and exaggerate to make you feel as hot as he did about it; the emotion was key (92-93) • Fossie’sgf Mary Anne shows up at villiage but was changed (94) • They became engaged; she left and got “lost” • Came back with necklace of human tongues: numb • Fossie states: “I loved her”- war changed her too much

14. Chapter 10: “Stockings” • Henry Dobbins is a metaphor for humanity (111) • The stockings were his talisman • “like many of us in Vietnam, Dobbins felt the pull of superstition” (112) • Irony? His gf “dumped him”- “the magic never goes away”

15. Chapter 11: “Church” • Monk leads them into an abandoned pagota • “leave churches alone” during the war • Kiowa urges acting humane (pages 114-117)

16. Chapter 12: “The Man I Killed” • Disturbing detail of dead man- why? (118-119) • Vivid recollection of horror of event • O’Brien imagines him as a man and not the enemy (121) • Feels more guilt • Plays out the “man”’s life • Kiowa tries to get Tim to “talk” – why?(123-124) • Needs to let the guilt free • Cannot shake it

17. Chapter 13: “Ambush” • Tim O’Brien met with his own daughter questioning if he killed someone • He recounts the visual memory that haunts him • “I did not hate the young man; I did not see him as the enemy; I did not ponder issues of morality or politics or military duty.” (126) • He does not forgive himself for what he was forced to do.

18. Chapter 14: “Style” • This young girl of 14 has lost her entire family and she is dancing • Azir confused by this- why? • This woman keeps dancing despite losing everything- why? • Why does Azir mock her? Why does Dobbins say “dance right”? • The human condition and empathy is a blurry difficult mess in wartime

19. Chapter 15: “Speaking of Courage” • The war is over and Norman Bowler home again- description of his town • All strange now that not at war any longer • He drives around the river with his friends as memories • Speaks to his dad but does not mention 7 medals- does not feels brave • Speaks to Sally and mentions “shit field”- he was a coward and did not search for Kiowa; feels guilty • He continues to circle the lake- metaphor for his swirling memories of wrong and right and truth

20. Chapter 16: “Notes” • Present day- stark and blunt use of language to mention about Norman Bowler’s death • “It’s almost like I got killed over there in Nam.” (150-152 read and annotate in text) • Bowler suggests memorializing Kiowa- asks wy he is not in the story

21. Chapter 17: “In The Field” • Flashback to the shit field and 18 men wading in it, searching for Kiowa • DSS- “Kiowa was gone.”- sad, simple truth • Leutenant Cross writes a letter to Kiowa’s father • Whenever a man died, all the soldiers wanted to do was forget (159) • A young boy sharing his gf’s photo gets K. killed • Bowler states: “It’s nobody’s fault…Everbody’s” (168-170)

22. Chapter 18: “Good Form” • THE WHOLE POINT • Read and annotate in text • Thematic connection and the relevance of truth

23. Chapter 19: “Moccasins” • 20 years after the war, Tim takes his daughter to the field where K. died to replace his moccasins as a memorial • Difficult to explain truth to his 10 year old • Questions the point of the war • Read 178-179

24. Chapter 20: “The Ghost Soldiers” • Tim O’Brien shot twice- once was taken care of by Rat Kiley; once by Bobby Jorgenson who botched the patch job and his wound became infected- speaks to the very real fear of dying • Carried a grudge until talks with him: “I hated him for making me stop hating him” (190) • He decides to get him back by scaring him at night with “ghost soldiers”- read page 95-96 on psychology • “…right and wrong were somewhere else” (198); “…you’re not human anymore” (200) • O’Brien makes a fool of him and they then consider the situation even

25. Chapter 21: “”Night Life” • Rat Kiley began to breakdown mentally • He was speaking funny and having visions • He felt as if they were all just “meat for the war”. • He commits suicide and “nobody blamed him” – matter-of-fact one adds to the despair

26. Chapter 22: “The Lives of The Dead” • “But this is true too: stories can save us.” (213) • He remembers his frst date with Linda – read page 217 • “…war memory and imagination and language combine to make spirits in the head.”(218) • “Timmy, stop crying”- this is what Linda would say to him after “she was dead”- what does this paradox suggest about O’Brien’s psychology? • Linda has cancre and was humiliated and made fun of- Tim regrets not “jumping in”- “As a writer, [he] wants ot save Linda’s life” (223) • We kept the dead alive with stories • Read page 223