What do the characters in The Things They Carried carry?
The narrator, Tim O’Brien, describes the things all the men of the company carry. They are things in the most physical sense—mosquito repellent and marijuana, pocket knives and chewing gum. The things they carry depend on several factors, including the men’s priorities and their constitutions.
What does Ted Lavender symbolize?
O’Brien has Lavender killed to serve several purposes: Lavender is a symbol of unweighed fear. The function of Lavender is to be a doppelganger, a ghostly twin to haunt Cross (a Christ-figure), the one who feels the most guilt for his death.
Did Rat Kiley kill himself?
As the nights remain black, Rat sinks further and further down to the point of real fear. Rat was afraid of himself, a much more terrifying enemy than any in Vietnam. He was afraid of what he might do if he truly lost it. Finally, he shoots himself in the foot.
Who killed Kiowa in The Things They Carried?
Kiowa’s death is symbolic of the senseless tragedy of war. He dies in a gruesome way, drowning under the muck of a sewage field about which his lieutenant, Jimmy Cross, has a bad feeling.
Why did Norman Bowker kill himself?
Bowker then suggested that O’Brien write a story about someone who feels that Vietnam robbed him of his will to live—he said he would write it himself but he couldn’t find the words. Eight months later Bowker hanged himself.
Why does Jimmy Cross feel guilty?
He felt guilty because he was distracted and thought about Martha. He thought he could have prevented it. Why did Lieutenant Jimmy Cross feel guilty about Ted Lavender’s death?
Why does LT cross blame himself for Lavender’s death?
Lieutenant Jimmy Cross blames himself for Ted Lavender’s death because he loves Martha so much that he’s been preoccupied. They burn Than Khe. Kiowa keeps describing the way Lavender fell when he died.
What does Jimmy Cross blame himself for?
He blames himself for making the wrong decision, concluding that he should have followed his first impulse and removed the men from the field. He feels that his oversight caused Kiowa’s death. Cross squats in the muck, revising the letter to Kiowa’s father in his head.
Does Martha love Jimmy Cross?
Martha is a character in The Things They Carried who only appears in the memories of First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. Cross is in love with Martha, and he clings to his love to help him get through the war.
What does Jimmy ask Tim to do when he writes the story?
What does Jimmy ask Tim to do when he writes his story? He urges O’Brien to paint him as a brave and good leader.
What did Norman Bowker wish for?
What does Norman Bowker wish for, more than anything? He wishes his dad didn’t care if he (Bowker) wins any medals.
Is Norman Bowker real?
MINNESOTA — Norman Bowker sadly passed away in 1978. Bowker was found hanging from a jump rope by a couple of his friends in the late evening. He was an esteemed soldier in the Alpha Company troop who fought in the Vietnam War. Bowker was known for always carrying his diary.
Why can’t Norman relate to anyone at home?
He doesn’t want to talk about the war but he does want to talk about how he almost won the silver star. Why is Norman unable to relate to anyone at home? No one knows the things that hes been through and witnessed, and instead they all congratulate him for it.
What did Norman Bowker carry emotionally?
He believes, according to O’Brien, that what marks men as courageous are medals and service awards. Because of and in spite of this belief, Bowker has an active emotional life, an intensity of feeling about the atrocities he experienced in Vietnam, especially Kiowa’s death.
Did Norman Bowker have PTSD?
The dead could sit up and return sometimes.” said O’Brien. Throughout The Things They Carried, there is no sign that Norman Bowker was suffering from PTSD. He killed himself at the end of the story while his wartime partner O’Brien started to lead a new life.
Is Norman Bowker a coward?
Bowker would say he wasn’t brave enough, but his father would point out he got seven medals; he wasn’t a coward. Bowker has the entire conversation dreamed up because he’s thought through so many times what he would say, and what he hopes his father would say.
What did Kiowa carry emotionally?
Kiowa is the emotional compass of Alpha Company, the one who gets everyone else to talk. Kiowa tries to comfort “O’Brien” after he kills the North Vietnamese soldier, and it is to Kiowa that Dobbins opens up about his respect for the clergy. Kiowa helps “O’Brien” by easing his transitions.
How does Norman Bowker experience his hometown?
How does Norman Bowker experience his hometown after returning to it after the end ofthe War? Norman Bowker feels completely disconnected from the place of his childhood and youth. Herecognizes the town, the lake, the people, but he feels as if they cannot understand him anylonger.
How does Norman Bowker describe courage?
Norman Bowker, for example, thinks that he was as brave as he thought he could have been, but that even that much bravery was not enough to save his friend. Such commentary provides us insight not only into Kiowa’s death but also into Bowker’s emotions.
Who wrote speaking of courage?
Tim O’Brien
What problems does Norman Bowker struggle with after the war?
What problems does Norman Bowker struggle with after the war? a He cannot keep a job. b He suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. c Everything has changed and he has no one to talk to about the one thing he wants to discuss.
How many times does Norman drive around the lake?
By Tim O’Brien. Back from Vietnam, on the Fourth of July, Norman Bowker is driving the seven-mile loop around the lake over and over again.