The Things They Carried

The Things They Carried An introduction to Tim O’Brien and his fictional account of the Vietnam War

Vietnam Views • Opposition: • Not obligated under Geneva treaty to help • Civil War – no right to intervene • Vietnam chose not to honor Geneva treaty • No Chinese threat – long history of China and Vietnam animosity • South wanted unification • No democracy in Vietnam • Bad military tactics – napalm, ambushes, etc.

Relevant Facts About the Vietnam War • No fixed date that the US entered into war with Vietnam • Series of steps from 1950 – 1965 Vietnam

Vietnam War • 58,000 Americans dead • ~150 Billion dollars – cost of America • Wanted to keep communism from spreading – domino theory • Guerrilla Warfare • Surprise attacks, ambushes, bombings, no clear enemy, terrorist in nature

Vietnam Timeline • 1950 – Truman sent economic and military aid to the French who were trying to retain hold on their Indochina colony. • 1954 – The defeated French conceded to a communist government north of the 17th parallel. • 1960 – JFK approves Aid • 1964 – US began sending combat troops as a result of The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Vietnam

Vietnam Timeline • 1965 – 1966 Military escalation because S. Vietnam couldn’t handle things • 1967 – Draft began. Antiwar Protests happening across US • 1969 –My Lai Massacre where US soldiers kill a village full of civilians • 1972 – Ceasefire • 1973 – Paris Peace Agreement Click here for an online timeline offered by pbs.org Vietnam

Post Vietnam • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: • Frightening thoughts and memories • Lack of emotional attachments to others • Sleep disorders • Easily startled • Nightmares/flashbacks • Psychiatric problems • Lack of interest in life • ~ 30% of Vietnam Veterans

Vietnam Demographics • Location – South of China, East of Laos and Cambodia, West of South China Sea Here is an interesting interactive map of places mentioned in the book Vietnam

Religion • Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Tam Giao (tri-religion, …) Vietnam

Religions *Other religions include: Hoa Hao (1.5%), Cao Dai (1.1%), Protestant (.5%, and Muslim (.1%)

People of Vietnam 80% ethnic Vietnamese 20% - 50+ different ethnic minority groups, hill tribes Languages spoken: Vietnamese, Chinese, English, French, Russian Vietnam

What Do You Need to Know About the Book Before Reading It? • It is ALL fiction! • Facts are not important! • Emotional effect of incidents is what is important.

Tim O’Brien (author) vs. “Tim O’Brien” (character, narrator) • Protagonist and sometimes narrator is “Tim O’Brien”. This “Tim O’Brien” in the book is NOT REAL. • Even when “Tim O’Brien” talks directly to the reader, it is the fictional “Tim”.

Example of the narrator “Tim O’Brien” speaking directly to the reader “Now and then, when I tell this story [about the baby water buffalo], someone will come up to me afterward and say she liked it. It’s always a woman. “…. What I should do”, she’ll say, “is put it all behind me. Find new stories to tell.” “I wont say it but I’ll think it. “I’ll picture Rat Kiley’s face, his grief, and I’ll think, You dumb cooze. “Because she wasn’t listening. “It wasn’t a war story. It was a love story.” ~ “How to Tell a True War Story”, pgs 84 - 85

Tim O’Brien • The author Tim did actually go to Vietnam and really was in the Alpha Company, but is writing a fictional account. Tim O'Brien

Themes • The justification of killing • Loss of a friend • Isolation • Corruption of war • Inability to adjust back to normal life • Individual consequences of war • Racism as a coping mechanism

Tim O'Brien biography:The Early Years • Born in Austin on Oct. 1, 1946 and grew up in a small town in Minnesota • He shares this birth date with several of his characters • Dad was an insurance salesman • Mom was an elementary school teacher Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien Biography:College Life • Political science major at Macalester College, attended peace vigils and war protests • Graduated in 1968 Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien Biography:To Go to War? • Received his draft notice upon graduation • Was against the war: hated Boy Scouts, bugs, and rifles. • Considered deserting to Canada once he received his classification as an infantryman Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien Biography:In Vietnam • Assigned to the 3rd Platoon, Alpha Company, 5th battalion, 46th Infantry as a foot soldier • Served in Vietnam from 1969-1970 • Returned home with a Purple Heart • Was wounded by shrapnel from a hand grenade Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien Biography:Views on Vietnam • Now believes it was an act of cowardice to go to war instead of fleeing to Canada • Was 22 years old and feared the disapproval of his family and friends, his townspeople and country • Hated every minute of Vietnam Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien Biography:Life after Vietnam • After returning to the states, he became a grad student at Harvard. • Left Harvard to become a newspaper reporter for The Washington Post. • Began writing fiction about Vietnam Tim O'Brien

Tim O’Brien • Claims he still gets calls from people, asking questions, offering their own opinions about what happened. • They want to know, missing the point of the novel, that life often does not offer solutions or resolutions, that it is impossible to know completely what secrets lurk within people Tim O'Brien

The Things They Carried