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Daniela Rocha

Ms. Guzman

AP Lit - P.1

November 18, 2019

“The Things They Carried” Literary Analysis

Soldiers are often portrayed to be mighty and emotionless, making them suitable for the

hardships faced in war. Because of this stereotype, any soldier that does show emotion is seen as

weak. In the narrative piece, “The Things They Carried”, Tim O’Brien follows a lieutenant,

Jimmy Cross, and his troop in the Vietnam War. In their time on the battleground, men hold back

their emotions in fear of showing weakness. O’Brien uses his selection of detail on emotion and

characterization of Lieutenant Cross to imply the message that soldiers are not as coldhearted

and tough as stereotypically believed.

One of the first things O’Brien mentions in the passage is objects the soldiers carried

throughout the war and their weight. By listing the numerous objects and weights, O'Brien also

explains the importance of each object, showing how each weighs down the soldiers. “Necessity

dictated” (O’Brien 2), meaning everything the men carried held importance. Some soldiers

carried things that would remind them of home. By carrying love letters, Lieutenant Cross

carried “his love for Martha up the hills and through the swamps” (O’Brien 2). “Almost

everyone humped (carried) photographs” (O’Brien 2). Holding onto mementos, the men never let

go of their past, always hoping to make it back home. Showing this side of the men allows

readers to see them as hopeful and not the stereotypical heartless soldier.

The passage highlights Lieutenant Cross to emphasize that being unable to reveal

emotions in situations like war can lead to unhealthy coping mechanisms. Cross is assigned as
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the lieutenant of his troop, meaning the soldiers will look up to him. This also means he is unable

to show how truly scared he is of being in war since he must set the example for his men. Cross’

method of coping was using Martha as a distraction throughout the narrative. “His mind

wandered. He had difficulty keeping his attention on the war.” (O’Brien 5). When in battle,

soldiers are aware they can die at any second. It would be difficult for soldiers to stay sane if

they only thought about war and death. In a way, Cross uses Martha to stay sane. She’s a sign of

hope, representing Cross’opportunity to get back home. So he would spend his war days

fantasizing. It wasn’t until “Ted Lavender was shot in the head” (O’Brien 7), that Cross began to

reevaluate his role as a lieutenant and how Martha was getting in the way of his men’s security.

“He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead”

(O’Brien 9). Always being distracted showed Cross’ fear had taken over him. When he decided

to only stay focused on war, Cross stopped putting himself as a priority. Him getting home was

not his goal anymore, it was making sure his troop was safe. Many soldiers can experience this

same dilemma, scared to be in a war but knowing they have to get through. Through Cross,

readers see how being unable to express one’s emotions negatively affects a soldier and can

potentially put others in danger.

O’Brien also mentions how the men are scared of war and death but did not know how to

express these fears, as they were trying to seem tough and heartless. The soldiers believed

expressing their sadness or fear would seem weak. But when Cross cried after soldier Lavender’s

death, one soldier “wanted to share the man’s pain, he wanted to care as Jimmy Cross cared”

(O’Brien 10). By stating this, O’Brien highlights how some soldiers lose their ability to express

emotion due to their fear of showing weakness. The surviving men were shaken up but didn’t
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know how to show it because “they were frightened to be cowards” (O’Brien 12). Soldiers are

people who deserve to express their emotions, especially when in traumatic situations like war.

Often in society, we believe soldiers are strong and mighty. Tim O’Brien uses his

selection of detail on emotion and characterization of Jimmy Cross in the narrative piece, “The

Things They Carried”, to emphasize the message that the stereotypical emotionless soldier

damages the real men behind the uniforms.