The Things They Carried Tim O’Brien

Author Background Born in 1946 in a small Minnesota town In college, vehemently opposed the Vietnam War and considered avoiding conscription by going to Canada Began service in Vietnam in February 1969 Served in the Fifth Battalion of the 46th Infantry, 198th Infantry Brigade, American Division until March 1970. O’Brien’s area of operations was in the Quang Ngai Province Later became setting of The Things They Carried service brought him to the South Vietnamese village of My Lai a year after the infamous massacre of 1968 eventually wounded and returned home with a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star for Valor, and a Combat Infantry Badge

Novel Background Published 1990 sequence of stories that take place during and after Vietnam War Blurs line between genres because it is both fact and fiction More important than fact or fiction is what emotion the story elicits in the reader If it brings out a strong emotion, there must be some truth to it (power/art of storytelling) Much has been drawn from O’Brien’s experiences O’Brien felt so close to his stories that he dedicated the work to his characters The most striking elimination of the boundary between fact and fiction is the narrator and protagonist’s name, Tim O’Brien (narrator but not necessarily the author) O’Brien inserts himself into his stories for 2 reasons: to anchor his narratives to a larger world he is unable to escape the memories of his war experience. Reliability of narrator is challenged throughout the novel theme of chaos leads to the tone of uncertainty - mimics feeling of the generation

Themes Physical and emotional burdens Fear of shame and guilt as a motivator Patriotism, masculinity, etc. The subjugation of truth to storytelling storytelling takes precedent over the need to be absolutely truthful or loyal to facts Storytelling becomes an expression of memory and a catharsis of the past Many characters in the novel seek resolution of some kind

Motifs Storytelling Social obligation Ambiguous morality Characters lose their sense of morality as they struggle with their emotions as a result of war Loneliness and isolation Soldiers struggle with these feelings while in war and when they return home

Symbols Dead young Vietnamese soldier Humanity’s guilt over horrific actions in wartime Kathleen the gap in communication between one who tells a story and one who receives a story Linda represents elements of the past that can be brought back through imagination and storytelling