The Vietnam War is recorded to have claimed the lives of 58,220 US Armed Forces. Of those killed, 48,717 were enlisted men (National Archives Administration). This war would become known as the longest running war in US history, and one of the most unpopular to the public (Anderson). Several pieces of literature have since been written about the Vietnam War, exposing the brutal reality of combat and life in a war zone. In The Things They Carried, author Tim O'Brien uses the front lines of the Vietnam War to explore the theme of the inhumanity of war.
It was 1965 when Lyndon B. Johnson made the decision to enter the Vietnam War. However, the United States had been involved in Vietnam for years previous to this decision- President Eisenhower had sent military advisors to train South Vietnamese forces in 1956 (Nelson). In 1957, the Vietcong started the insurgency in South Vietnam; it was clear to the United States that they would have to increase their involvement in Vietnam in the near future (Anderson). In 1965 the United States officially entered the Vietnam War on behalf of Saigon and the rest of South Vietnam (Mintz). The US would not completely pull out of the war until 1973, making it the longest US military conflict in history (Anderson). The decision to enter the war sparked heated protests from anti-war and civil rights advocates all across the nation, all protesting different things- the only thing that connected this string of protests was their common hatred for the Vietnam War (Barringer). One of the largest anti-war groups was the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a group that developed in universities nationwide (Barringer). Civil rights and anti-war groups alike had one thing in common: they wanted peace in Vietnam. Tim O’Brien was one of these protesters- he attended peace gatherings and protests of the war while attending Macalester College, and was drafted into the 46th Infantry in Quang Ngai after graduating (Reed). He served in the army from 1968-1970, earning the Purple Heart award (Minnesota Historical Society). O’Brien has said in interviews that his experience in Vietnam inspired many of his stories, and he creates his harrowing stories by blending his real experiences with fictitious details and characters (O’Brien, Writing Vietnam). After the war, O’Brien turned to writing books about his experiences, such as The Things They Carried, Going After Cacciato, and In The Lake of The Woods. The Things They Carried, his most recent book, has been received with critical acclaim, winning the O. Henry award and a National Magazine Award (Naparsteck). His effective use of literary techniques creates a haunting and vivid picture of the Vietnam War.
Tim O’Brien uses a wide variety of methods to convey a clear picture of the Vietnam War, both on the battlefield and in the states. One of his most effective techniques is the use of imagery throughout every chapter, which he uses both to engross the reader in the scene and to convey a sense of shock or delusion within a character. One example is O’Brien’s description of a man in The Man I Killed. Of the man in question, O’Brien writes that he was “poorly muscled—a scholar, maybe. His wrists were the wrists of a child”(O’Brien 120). This use of imagery communicated a sense of shock within the character, because he is so intently focused on the childlike appearance of the man that it becomes engrained into his mind. O’Brien also uses repetition to maintain imagery– throughout the chapter, O’Brien mentions several times that “one eye was shut. The other was a star-shaped hole” (O’Brien 124). The mention of a star shaped hole enhances the image that O’Brien is communicating, allowing the reader to gain an understanding of the shock that the character is going through and gain a clearer sense of how it must feel to kill someone at such a young age. O’Brien also uses flashbacks to intensify understanding of the longevity that a war will have on soldiers, going between scenes of attempted rehabilitation and violent battles in Vietnam. In Speaking of Courage, the use of flashbacks is crucial to understand the struggle that so many soldiers had when attempting to recuperate from the trauma of war in civilian life. Norman Bowker is one of these soldiers, remembering as he drives around his town that at one point how he felt that “sometimes the bravest thing on earth was to sit trough the night and feel the cold in your bones” (O’Brien 141). Throughout this chapter, Norman struggles deeply with what can be inferred to be PTSD, writing that “The war was over and there was no place in particular to go” (O’Brien 131). The flashbacks throughout help the reader understand the extent to which Norman feels lost, and to realize how deeply fighting in a war must damage the psyche—particularly when many of the soldiers were barely 18. O’Brien examines trauma and shock through several techniques, including metafiction. Metafiction—defined as a method in which the author deliberately draws attention to the fictitious elements in the story (Currie)—is seen throughout The Things They Carried, and is used as a way to convey detachment from the war itself by character O’Brien. It is also used to raise inquiries about the thin line that can exist between fiction and reality (Calloway). The most evident use of metafiction is the whole of Good Form, although there are hints of the technique in other chapters as well. In this chapter, O’Brien admits that although some of the details throughout the story actually happened, the majority of the story is completely fictitious (O’Brien 171). Through metafiction, the reader gets a sense of disillusionment from reality, as if the characters are mentally trapped on the battlefield. This effectively contributes to the image of the psychological effect of war.
O’Brien’s fantastic use of literary techniques to create a vivid image caused The Things They Carried to become a literary phenomenon. The book itself was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, as well as the National Book Critic Circle’s Award (Reed). The content of the book has sparked conversations about youth and war, as well as instilling understanding of the truth of the Vietnam War in students who will never see anything like it. The book was released to critical acclaim—reviews called it a work of “essential fiction” (Harris). It was partially these astounding reviews that led The Things They Carried to become such an influential piece in society—the content within the book has been found applicable to topics that are both war-related and unrelated. The idea of experiences shaping reality can be applied to high school students, soldiers, or anyone else. The divide between truth and fiction can seem very clear, but O’Brien shows that sometimes it’s much more difficult to tell what is fact (Kowalewski). O’Brien also makes the point that experience shapes reality, and that reality is sometimes subjective. Sometimes the perception and memory of an event becomes “reality” (Boyle and Hasslebrock).
O’Brien explores several themes in The Things They Carried, one of them being the inhumanity of war. Throughout the book, the effects of battle on the memory and personality of the soldiers were covered in depth, showcasing the process of trauma and recovery. In How to Tell a True War Story, O’Brien mentions that in a true story, there is nothing uplifting. There is no resolution (O’Brien 65). The stories of Norman Bowker and the rest of Alpha company show that there is no such thing as a good war experience, and that there are several ways to recover after going through such a trauma. It is mentioned early on in the novel that most of Alpha Company was around 19 years old, a number that explains the childish manner with which the soldiers behave. Their actions are explained by their youth, their reckless and cruel attitudes simply a coping mechanism. Research has shown us that the brain isn’t fully developed until 25 years old- these boys had been ripped from their youth and forced to grow up before they could even fully function rationally (Sather). This idea of making monsters out of men was explored thoroughly throughout the book, with characters such as Azar and Curt Lemon acting as archetypes for the reckless child. In one instance, Azar’s only reaction to having killed a puppy is to say, “What’s everyone so upset about? I mean, Christ, I’m just a boy” (O’Brien 35). The effectiveness of the postwar recovery of these soldiers is also affected by their age—their brains were forced to develop while undergoing trauma. O’Brien also mentions the line between moral and necessary action, and how spending such a long time in such a brutal environment can turn the best men into monsters. After being injured and sent out of combat due to the poor work of a platoon medic, O’Brien finds himself commenting on how much he’d changed, saying that he’d gone from a passive and quiet boy to a hardened and cruel man (O’Brien 190). He questions where his morality has gone, as in the moment he viewed his actions towards Jorgens as completely necessary, saying that “the need for revenge kept eating at [him]” (O’Brien 191). The inhumanity of war is explored in great detail through the stories of these soldiers, and leaves the reader with a sense of fury towards the nature of humanity.
Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried is a harrowing depiction of the Vietnam War at its most brutal moments. Through imagery, metafiction, and flashback, O’Brien manages to capture a deeply disturbing glimpse of the effect battle can have on the mind, and leaves the reader wondering about the purpose of war and its inhumanity. The Vietnam War played a large role in shaping today’s society, as well as asking some of the most discussed questions about civil rights, the purpose of war, and the morality of action. Through books like The Things They Carried, readers can experience second hand the terror and brutality of wars and consider whether or not a war ever has a true winner.