Mackenzie Shivers #35

The Things They Carried Seminar Pre-Write

December 14, 2017

In the book The Things They Carried by Tim OBrien, the heaviest thing the men carried was
their memories. The Memories sometimes helped them move forward, but other times it dragged them
down. When taking a look at the majority of the soldiers that fought in the Vietnam War, they were
drafted. Some soldiers didnt even fully understand what they were fighting for, or who they supported.
Memories were what they could turn to, it also helped them cope with war. Take a look at Lieutenant
Jimmy Cross, he was highly ranked in the war, but coped with his memories by thinking of a girl named
Martha. Lieutenant Cross cared for Martha more than Martha knew. Everyday Lieutenant Cross would
pull out images of Martha, never wanting to forget her beautiful face. At one point she sent him a rock
and he would place it in his mouth. These small acts were what helped him take his mind off the war.
There comes a point though when memories begin to drive them mad. They begin to miss the people who
are safe at home, and miss their normal life. One day Lieutenant Cross took his soldiers out on a mission
to destroy elaborate tunnels. It was Lieutenant Cross job to ensure that the soldiers around him were
prepared for anything. One soldier was instructed to survey the tunnel, but as the soldier was finishing his
job the rest of the soldiers were screwing around. During this time Lieutenant Cross was caught in a
fantasy world with Martha. Lieutenant Cross gazed at the tunnel, but he was not there. He was buried
with Martha under the white sand at the Jersey shore [...] He was smiling. Vaguely, he was aware of how
quiet the day was, the sullen paddies, yet he could not bring himself to worry about matters of security.
He was beyond that. He was just a kid at war, in love. (page 11) He was so caught up in his love for
Martha, he didnt do his duty, and Ted Lavender was shot in the head. Ted Lavender was one of the
soldiers that went on this mission. He went to go do his business nearby, when he rejoined the group he
was shot and died. Even the memories they were making as they fought in the war stuck in their minds.
Memories are made constantly, but in this specific situation, Lieutenant Cross was too caught up in his
memory of love, that he neglected his duty, and one of his men died for it. He tried getting Martha out of
his thought, so no one else would lose their life because he was daydreaming. He then became sad, and
the war felt more real than ever. Memories had positive and negative effects, but it helped them vanish
from the war.

Storytelling played a significant role in the Vietnam war, it allowed soldiers and veterans to
escape to a fantasy land, where they always feel threatened by war. During the war when the soldiers
would sit around talking and smoking, they would tell stories. When soldiers came home and tried fitting
back into their normal way of life, they would also tell stories. In the chapter Speaking of Courage, it talks
about a boy named Norman Bowker. He continues to think through how he would tell the story of him
almost receiving the Silver Star. You can tell he is starting to go mad, because he isnt telling this story
aloud. The further you read, the more times Norman goes around his neighborhood loop telling himself
the story. He began his story when he was ordering food, but felt ridiculous and still held it in. Being able
to share what they went through in war helped them feel a sense of peace. Norman never told his father or
anyone about his story, and soon he felt out of place and ended up killing himself. Earlier in the book, in
the chapter called How to Tell a True War Story, Tim OBrien starts discussing the way veterans feel
when they are home after the war. In war, you lose your sense of definite, hence your sense of truth
itself, and therefore [...] you wake up and shake your wife and start telling the story to her [...] than for a
long time you lie there watching the story happen in your head. You listen to your wifes breathing. The
wars over. (page 78) Telling the story allowed the soldiers and veterans to get it off of their chest. When
they didnt share their stories the stories repeated in their heads. For example when in a dream, sometimes
smells waft around in the air, pain is felt, and emotions are shared. The feeling is so real, it is scary at
times. Veterans as they came home from the war, had this experience, but instead of a dream they were
reliving this tragic experience. By telling their loved ones stories, weight was lifted off their shoulders.
Even telling stories that may not be true, helped them take their minds off the war.

A common theme with the Vietnam War, was receiving peace through war. This doesnt make
sense, peace is harmony between people, and freedom, not conflict and death. In the book, The Things
They Carried it continues to explain their belief in peace and war. In the chapter called Spin, it explains
different characters, and what they did in their free time during the war. One of the soldiers worked on
stories. In a particular story a guy falls in love with a Red Cross nurse. The war was over they thought,
and both of them got what they wanted, love. As the days go by, the guy starts feeling a need to be back at
war. ...one day he rejoins his unit in the bush. Cant wait to get back into action. Finally one of his
buddies asks what happened with the nurse, why so hot for combat, and the guy says, All that peace, man,
it felt so good it hurt. I wanted to hurt it back. (page 34) This story says at the end that peace hurt so bad
that he wanted to hurt it back. Could this mean that peace was so different from war, that they preferred
war? This is just a story written, but most of the stories shared by soldiers, were based on real events.
Since both sides of this war were very determined for power, the only thing they could do was fight and
force their beliefs on their own people. It was then up to the people to decide whether communism or
capitalism was more peaceful. And to carry out this action, war was brought down on the people.