...are on their quest of “fitting in”. This process of changing a person’s personality is very similar to what happened to many of the characters in the Book the Things They Carried. Context This book takes place during the Vietnam War and follows the lives of american men who are trying to survive the horrible conditions of Vietnam. Thesis In The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien , the author uses the character development of Mary Anne and Rat Kiley as well as his own to show how being in environment like Vietnam can twist your sense of right and wrong and your mental stability because of the things you are exposed to. Body Paragraph One Topic Sentence In the Book...
Words: 1274 - Pages: 6
...In Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, O’Brien makes it clear that the minor characters he includes play a chief role in the story’s significance. For example, Linda is introduced as an insignificant character, but the reader finds out that she plays a critical role in the development of the story’s main theme regarding the power of storytelling, and how the memories from these stories keep people alive. O’Brien constantly repeats himself by stating, “Stories can saves us,” making it a reoccurring theme in his book, and it is especially exemplified throughout his story about Linda. In the last chapter titled, “The Lives of the Dead,” it is the point where O’Brien begins his story about Linda, his lover, at the end of his overall story....
Words: 606 - Pages: 3
...Throughout the short stories in The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien creates a diverse group of characters with his collective explanations of what they individually possessed. One of O'Brien's characters, Kiowa, carries both physical and mental things during the Vietnam war that defines his disposition as both a young soldier and an average human being. Each physical belonging carried, gave individuality to those who possessed it; including Kiowa. The important belonging Kiowa carried is described by O'Brien as an "illustrated New Testament that had been presented to him by his father." Kiowa's Bible symbolizes his obvious faith and devotion which help him get through the war. By Kiowa choosing the Bible as one of his most important items...
Words: 611 - Pages: 3
...Everyone carries luggage literally or figuratively, people carry a variety of things with them, wallets with pictures of family, credit cards, small trinkets etc. The things they carried by Tim O’Brien can be looked at in two different ways, are what they’re carrying merely items or do they have a deeper meaning for each individual. The items carried by the men in this story serve several purposes for each individual, whether its superstition, sentimental or essential to their military jobs. By using cataloging and paying close attention to the details, in The things they carried there are several characters in which we can look deeper into the items they carry, and how they affect each character and how that plays into who they are outside of their military life. Before we look into each individual character, first it is important to look at how each character is the same in what they carry. The story has an extensive list of items that each person carries as basic military items. General items they carried include P-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wrist watches, dog tags, mosquito repellent, chewing gum, candy, cigarettes, salt tablets, packets of Kool-Aid, lighters, matches, sewing kits,military payment certificates, C rations and Two or three canteens of water. These lightweight items are the basic essentials that a military man needs and thusly they do not burden the soldier too much. However throughout the story the mentioning of weight is repeated several...
Words: 1797 - Pages: 8
...Geanean Mckenzie Professor Weiss Modes Of Analysis Character Of Analysis Essay 2/16/14 In Tim O’Brien “The Things They Carried” The first story in the collection introduces the cast of characters that reappear throughout the book. The cast is made up of the soldiers of the Alpha Company, led by First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. The platoon is deployed to fight in the Vietnam War. The narrator, O’Brien, is one of the soldiers, and he distinguishes one soldier from another in this first story by the items that they carry. Authors as far back as Homer described soldiers going into battle by naming the things that they carried: goatskins filled with water, spears, and locks of hair from their beloved ones. O’Brien updates this literary strategy. His characters carry the modern implements of war. But the feeling evoked is similar: static lists make the characters seem already dead, prematurely mourned. The lists are like wills. The first story is told in third person, with some insight into the mind of Jimmy Cross. This movement between perspectives is called free indirect discourse, and serves to distance the reader from the soldiers. The reader sees them as if they were in a movie, moving slowly across an unfamiliar landscape, carrying their various burdens. The ancient movement of men going to war is juxtaposed with the rough, modern language of the soldiers themselves. They use slang, swear at each other, and try to diffuse the feeling of danger and helplessness by describing death...
Words: 1267 - Pages: 6
...Introduction to Literature Critical Analysis of Fiction paper The Intangibles they carried Every person has items one needs to carry but they are incomparable to that of a soldier. Tim O’Brien emphasizes this in his short story, “The Things They Carried” as he takes on the narrative role explaining what he observed of the soldiers he once fought alongside. Chronicling both the intensities and tragedies of war he tells the stories of fellow soldiers and reveals truths of war at the same time. In precise detail and intentional metaphorical language O’Brien describes what it is that each soldier carries and how that relates to them as an individual. While some are intangible, such as guilt and fear, others are specific physical objects, including matches and morphine. Simultaneously, he frames the struggles not only of each man but of the war in general and the shame and emotion involved. It is what he does not directly say but rather implies with his descriptions of each soldier that bring the deeper message to the surface. The detail and element of characterization Tim O’Brien uses to describe each soldier in “The things they carried” reveals the deeper meaning that the emotional baggage each soldier carries with them weighs upon them more heavily than the physical items, essentially interfering with their duties of war. Jimmy Cross, the main character O’Brien highlights, appears to carry the most emotional baggage with him as the story opens explaining how he carries...
Words: 1334 - Pages: 6
...The Things They Carried written by Tim O’Brien is a postmodern novel that details the daily activities of Alpha Company (a platoon of soldiers) throughout the Vietnam War. O’Brien depicts the harsh realities and terrors associated with war and the harsh effects soldiers are faced to deal with on an ongoing basis. Given the time frame and settings of both these chapters at first glance, “The Lives of the Dead” and “In the Field” appear to be critically different, but after further analysis one can easily fathom that they are in fact quite similar. O’Brien emphasizes these similarities by using the theme of death and the effects correlated with it, regardless of the situation. The effects of death are then identified by studying several characters reactions to the death of various platoon members and key people within their lives. By doing this O’Brien is able to connect these chapters seamlessly, and thus strengthen the theme of death throughout his novel. “The Lives of the Dead” is an unique chapter as it not only captures what it is like to be a soldier in the Vietnam War, but it also focuses on the experiences one faces with death. Furthermore, how it doesn’t matter your age, gender or status death will ultimately play a key role in your life. After Lieutenant Jimmy Cross sent in an air strike on a seemingly deserted area that resulted in the death of one old man, the members of Alpha Company are forced to cope with the death. Once again, the majority of them take it as a joke...
Words: 1161 - Pages: 5
...evil, right and wrong, civilized and uncivilized, freedom and oppression for Vietnam, according to American standards; then it traveled the long physical distance to Vietnam and attempted to make its own notions about these things clear to the Vietnamese people—ultimately by brute, technological force. For the U.S. military and government, the Vietnam that they had in effect invented became fact. For the soldiers that the government then sent there, however, the facts that their government had created about who was the enemy, what were the issues, and how the war was to be won were quickly overshadowed by a world of uncertainty. Ultimately, trying to stay alive long enough to return home in one piece was the only thing that made any sense to them. As David Halberstam puts it in his novel, One Very Hot Day, the only fact of which an American soldier in Vietnam could be certain was that "yes was no longer yes, no was no longer no, maybe was more certainly maybe." Almost all of the literature on the war, both fictional and nonfictional, makes clear that the only certain thing during the Vietnam War was that nothing was certain. Philip Beidler has pointed out in an impressive study of the literature of that war that "most of the time in Vietnam, there were some things that seemed just too terrible and strange to be true and others that were just too terrible and true to be strange." The main question that Beidler's study raises is how, in light of the overwhelming ambiguity that...
Words: 5116 - Pages: 21
...An analysis of the Role of Family Disappointment in Joyce’s Dubliners James Joyce, an Irish modernist writer and influential author in the twentieth century, wrote the story collection named “Dubliners”. This collection consisted of fifteen short stories and carried a naturalist style. In “Dubliners”, Joyce rarely uses metaphors, relying on simplicity and attention to detail to create an authentic setting. Joyce often carried hidden similarities throughout each of his novels and poetry. This is seen true within Joyce’s collection, “Dubliners”. A close analysis of “Dubliners” reveals an excellent example of the role of family disappointment as shown in each of the short stories; “Araby”, “Eveline”, and “The Dead”. A direct example or claim of family disappointment can clearly be seen within each of these three short stories. Theses examples will be laid out and explained throughout this essay. Each example having varying circumstance, and outcome. Displayed from the point of view of the characters, to be taken inside their heads, and be shown a different aspect of what family disappointment means to the characters. The theme of disappointment in “Dubliners” is all about the painful experience. Ambiguity so to speak, the misconception of life being grand, only to face the troubles of reality. The characters determine that their own families don’t always have their best interest at heart, that their wives were deceitful, and that the world of business can be bitter...
Words: 1560 - Pages: 7
...Introduction The task of leadership is not one of superiority or dictating by any means; it is rather a form of the humble servitude of those whom the leader is positioned to guide. A quality leader takes his or her position with the utmost responsibility to provide access for the masses to express their concerns, and hopefully respond in a justifiable manner that allows for the most favorable outcome for the largest portion of the ‘followers’. Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral,” Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried,” President Abraham Lincoln, and President John F. Kennedy all had characteristics of great leadership. The University Code of Integrity is also one of the examples showing the importance of integrity for a fair leader to embrace in his or her duties. It is with the use of these examples that I plan to...
Words: 1239 - Pages: 5
...Foils in King Lear: Kent and Oswald Matin Shariatian Shakespeare’s plays are always rich in complex and interconnected characters which compare and contrast in such a way that an analysis of these characters reveals the themes of the play. King Lear is no exception to that. This play’s foils reveal the main themes carried in the story such as loyalty, nature, identity, love, etc… This essay will focus mainly on the theme of loyalty as it is the main theme carried by the characters that will be compared and contrasted in this text, Kent and Oswald, two servants with mostly, but not always, opposite natures. Kent and Oswald’s characters quite clearly contrast each other in many levels. Kent’s line “No contraries hold more antipathy/Than I and such a knave” (7, 84-85) is well representative of the connection of these two characters in the play. The most obvious contrast between the two is the people they serve. Kent’s master, King Lear, and Oswald’s master, Gonoril, are enemies in the story as the motivations and actions of one bring the other one down. This marks the most superficial difference between Kent and Oswald. Another aspect in which these two servants differ is their morality and values. Kent, an extremely loyal servant, motivated by defending his values, confronts Lear after the King banishes his daughter for being truthful. He explains “To plainness honour’s bound/ When majesty stoops to folly” (1, 139-140) meaning that he honors his value, plainness,...
Words: 1192 - Pages: 5
...Project Key Words…………………………………………… | 1 | 1.1.2 What is Freeform Gameplay?.............................. | 1 | 1.1.3 Project Goal…………………………………………………….. | 1 | 1.1.4 Project Context……………………………………………….. | 2 | 1.1.5 Project Objectives…………………………………………… | 3 | 1.1.6 Techniques for Realisation………………………………. | 3 | 1.1.7 Structure of This Report………………………………….. | 4 | Section 2: The Contextual Review……………………………………….. | 6 | 2.1 Market Research…………………………………………………….. | 6 | 2.1.1 Categorisation of Gameplay Elements…………….. | 6 | 2.1.2 Game Comparisons…………………………………………. | 8 | 2.1.3 Comparison Analysis………………………………………. | 9 | 2.2 Market Surveys……………………………………………………….. | 11 | 2.2.1 Target Audience……………………………………………… | 11 | 2.2.2 Survey Approach…………………………………………….. | 11 | 2.2.3 Questionnaire…………………………………………………. | 12 | 2.2.4 Survey Results………………………………………………… | 12 | Section 3: Project Planning………………………………………………….. | 17 | 3.1 Design Blueprints……………………………………………………. | 17 | 3.1.1 Design Approach…………………………………………….. | 17 | 3.1.2 Design Document……………………………………………. | 17 | 3.1.3 Production Planning……………………………………….. | 19 | 3.1.4 Testing Plan……………………………………………………. | 20 | 3.1...
Words: 13805 - Pages: 56
...Porter, in his article, “Characterization,” touches upon the motivations and mindsets of the characters in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest all the while addressing the accusations of sexism that have been said against the novel. In his introductory paragraph Porter outlines what his critical analysis will focus on, asserting that, “flat or round, static or dynamic, exterior or interior in presentation, all of the characters come alive and, in Faulkner’s terminology for his own best creations, ‘stand up and cast a shadow.’” I personally feel that the author of this scholarly article does a fine job of proving his assertion, and in just a few pages, Porter has furthered my overall understanding of the novel and the characters within...
Words: 1091 - Pages: 5
...relax and switch off for a couple of hours - this film is not for you. A barrage of dream sequences interrupted by brief encounters with endless characters; this is a piece of shamelessly self indulgent psychoanalysis on Fellini's part. Of course, this is exactly what he intended. The main character is that of Guido (played by Fellini himself) a director unable to complete his latest film and loosely based on the identity of his own creator (Fellini). Fellini has been able to achieve the effect of mise en abyme not only through the dream sequences but also with this being an autobiographical piece. Viewers are intentionally lulled into the false belief that they are watching a film about Fellini, not the character Guido. Throughout, obvious references to the films chaos and irregularities are made by characters through their criticism of the unfinished, fictional film. When giving Guido notes on his film, one character calls it 'a chain of gratuitous episodes' which pretty much describes Fellini's 8½ to perfection. In another scene Guido is criticised for his obsession with depicting 'Italy's Catholic conscience' which is also a reoccurring motif of Fellini's. He plays this game with the viewer by highlighting the inadequacies of his own film through the criticism of the fictional one. An endless array of different female characters appear throughout the film as viewers are forced to analyse the protagonists relationships with women starting from his childhood. It is a psychoanalysts...
Words: 1012 - Pages: 5
...Gabriella Monica English 126 Marcie Sims 8 August 2013 Experience in Life Nowadays, people have learned that experience is a process of learning. Whether the learning is met to be a bad or good experience to the person, it will influence his or her life. Similar with every story that is written, the main character will face a conflict in his or her life. A Story like “Aladdin”, a well-known children story, can be interpreted as a part of learning. Whereby we can see that the sultan of Agrabah learned that he could not trust Jafar, his royal vizier anymore. This was because Jafar tried to take over the Sultan’s power of owning Agrabah. If the conflict had not happened, the Sultan would have not learned about Jafar. This kind of conflict can be defined as an experience to the Sultan of Agrabah. In consequence, the Sultan of Agrabah learned to distrust Jafar. This kind of analysis also applies to some stories and poems. As it is mentioned that most stories or creative writings have conflicts of their own, ”A Good Man is Hard to Find”, “When I heard Learn’d Astronomer”, “The Things They Carried” and “The Secretary’s Chant” lifted up their own conflict by the authors. However, they shared the same theme that is possible to engage them together that experiences shape the individual’s belief. People affect each other’s lives that it is possible for the individual to learn under another person’s influence. This causes people’s comments or actions can change the individual’s way...
Words: 1519 - Pages: 7
