The Things They Carried is a variety of short stories all put into one book by Tim O'Brien. The stories in this book tell what life was like during the Vietnam War for many of the young soldiers, and their thoughts and feelings when they returned to the United States. Tim O’Brien earned a Purple Heart when he got hit with shrapnel in a grenade attack in Vietnam (NEA, 2007). During the book one of the main characters talked about goes by the name as Kiowa. Kiowa was a Native American and also a Baptist. He was a very honest and trustworthy soldier who always tried to help his fellow soldiers get through the complicated times of the war. Tragically Kiowa’s death during the war showed no dignity towards him. After a long day the platoon decided to settle down along a river, but they soon decided that they set up camp in a sewage field due to the repugnant smell. The rain came down without an end in sight, and the ground bubbled with the extra rain and heat. Out of nowhere rounds of mortar started to fall onto …show more content…
He was hit with a mortar to then bleed out and suffocate in a field of wastes. Tim O’Brien the author of The Things They Carried mentioned the death of Kiowa to show that not everyone died in an honorable way during the war. During the death the soldiers felt upset due to the fact that Kiowa was such a genuine guy and would do anything for anyone and he did not deserve to go out the way he did. They thought it was unfair for good people to die in a war and they were ready for the war to just be over. The loss of Kiowa would affect the platoon negatively. The platoon was upset that Kiowa was gone because he always seemed to know what to say and how to bring the platoons spirits up. During the Vietnam War many good people lost their lives fighting for something they did not know the reason for. The Vietnam War was a time of confusion and devastation for many families and soldiers across the