"The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

Note: This post was written by a student in the spring of 2019. 

               Hundreds of thousands of men and women undergo the struggles that follow after serving their country every day: anxiety, fear, and, worst of all, guilt. It seems almost unavoidable that the consequences of being active in war are either death or life-long trauma. If soldiers just so happen to make it out of war alive, they are haunted by the experiences they had, often with the idea that they are the only ones who endured the horrors. This isolation and sense of being alone takes a significant toll on those soldiers as well as their loved ones, which in turn leads to a need for professional help from therapists. It is common for therapy to utilize fictional stories for their therapeutic potential. The therapeutic potential of fiction writing is seen in its ability to help people come to terms with their issues, see themselves in a different light, or even realize a different way in which they can deal with struggles in life. “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien is a great example. It vividly shows readers the weight and fear active soldiers carried through war. Targeting an audience of former soldiers, this short story highlights the loss, dread, and hardships experienced in war, which potentially allows veterans to come to terms with their pasts in knowing that they are not alone.

Throughout the story, readers can both see and feel the wedge between relationships that is created while being away at war that many people today may struggle with. We see this most specifically when Martha writes to Lieutenant Cross, giving him a pebble. The short story says, “But he wondered what her truest feelings were, exactly, and what she meant by separate-but-together,” in her letter.   Many may suffer from broken relationships due to the effects of war on soldiers’ psyche or may even suffer from long lost love. This is seen in Lieutenant Jimmy Cross’s love for Martha and his unrelenting daydreams about her that will probably never be fulfilled. I believe this aspect of the story would tug on the hearts of many who served and understand the loss felt in terms of relationships. Many people probably don’t want their relationships to suffer due to their experiences on duty, but they do. Often, built up fears and anxieties cause people to externalize their emotions and project them onto others in their lives. Instead of dealing with those emotions in a healthy manner, people like veterans may lash out or even put up walls in an attempt to cope. This story could aid as a call-to-action for former soldiers to not let what they have now in life fall apart, or to also accept the relationships that didn’t last due to war and heal from it.

The great depth of detail and hardship seen in “humping” through the wilderness—“…pocket knives, heat tabs, wrist watches, dog tags…”, “…seven ounces of premium dope…”, and “…a .45 caliber pistol that weighed 2.0 pound fully loaded…”—also may serve as a source of connection and comfort in former soldiers. O’Brien gets into specifics and lists anything from bombs to drugs to ease the anxieties of certain soldiers. If anyone knows this feeling, it would be the story’s targeted audience. Rereading something like this could possibly allow the veterans to relive that moment in their lives with an understanding that they aren’t alone. They weren’t the only ones struggling with the fear and not  being allowed to express it. They weren’t the only ones trudging along with anticipation of attack at any moment. This story could greatly provide them with a means of catharsis, or relief and release from their repressed emotions they may have never known they had.

What makes this story especially therapeutic is the death of a soldier due to Lieutenant Cross’s loss of focus. I feel like the Lieutenant’s experience would allow other people to connect with and acknowledge their guilt for friends and/or fellow soldiers they may have lost in war. It was Lieutenant’s flaw, his deep desire for Martha, that allowed him to put his guard down, and he suffered for it. “No more fantasies, he told himself.” He decided to “shut down the daydreams,” and his entire demeanor changed. Cross’s priorities changed especially, which was to put his men first and put everything else in his life to the side. This change experienced by the Lieutenant most likely has been experienced by all who have had the responsibility of other lives in their hands. Reading this may allow those former soldiers to come to grips with who they are now and the pain they suffered along the way. They would be able to identify with Lieutenant Cross and come to accept the experiences they had. These details and specifics, even the instance of the young dead boy in the ditch, would allow them to become even closer with the short story.

I feel as though the target audience will have great appreciation for Tim O’Brien’s ability to grasp the grotesque and cruel nature of war that they must carry with them for the rest of their lives.