Comparing The Journeys Of John Colter And Tom Murphy

Throughout the story, O’Brien gives long, tedious, monotonous and utterly boring lists of the things the men carried. “The things they carried were largely determined by necessity” (O’Brien 117), but each man’s necessities were different. All of the men carried very heavy loads to begin with, and added to these loads things that seemingly lightened their burdens. O’Brien’s point behind all this listing is to show the reader just how much physical weight these men carried and how slow and tedious the war in which they fought was. “They moved like mules… it was just the endless march, village to village, without purpose, nothing won or lost.” (O’Brien 124)

The things the soldiers carried defined their character, both the physical things and the metaphorical things. All of the men physically carried their gear, which included things like their helmet, jungle boots, grenades, firearms, and sometimes each other. Mentally they had to carry their brutal memories of war and the terrible things they encountered. 1st Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carried letter from his girlfriend Martha, 2 photographs of her, and a pebble good luck charm; all of these things show that he is compassionate and cares deeply about his girlfriend. He also carried the lives of his men on his shoulders. Dave Jensen can be characterized as a hygienic person; he carried extra socks, a toothbrush, floss, soap, and foot powder. Along with his hygienic items, he carried a rabbit 's foot for good luck. Many other men carried things that symbolized important things; Norman Bowker carried a tongue from an enemy and a diary, Rat Kiley carried comic books, and Kiowa carried a pair of moccasins, an illustrated new testament, and his grandfather’s hatchet. Each man carried memories, stress, and knowledge. Personally I carry memories, that are each important in their own ways, and I carry a little wooden lady bug with me for good luck.

Items they carried had been based on the necessity of that item and this necessity dictated (355). Amongst these was cigarettes, kool-aid packets, P-38 can openers, heat tabs, wristwatches, pocket knives, rations, water etc (355). Due to extreme war conditions, they carried armor, bandages, and a green plastic poncho that was “worth every ounce” (356). Lt. Cross carried letters from a girl named Martha, which carried a strong significance throughout the duration of the excerpt. According to their rank or specialty, the soldiers carried a variety of weapons and accessories. They performed various missions while being resupplied every few days with “more of the same “(365). An increase in the amount of equipment carried translated to the increase in the amount of physical weight withheld. All these physical objects in which they carried weighed down on their emotional state of mind.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to make up in the morning for work and see the sunrise from the water? That is exactly what Jacob Wheeler does and loves it, Here is a favorite quote of his.“There is just something about the crisp morning air, the sun finally taking a peek from the night, the early morning take off, the first fish of the day, that is what the game is about. I love getting up every morning for work and doing what i love to do”(bassmaster1).

Another substantially detailed necessity of the men is their military supplies. O'Brien goes into minute detail, for literally pages, describing the supplies that the men used for defense purposes. Primarily, he lists the standard weaponry for war, the typical rifles, grenades, and defensive clothing such as the flak jacket and helmet (6- 7). He relates the enormous burden of weight that Ted Lavender was carrying when he was shot, and how that weight caused him to fall like "a big sandbag or something - just boom, then down." (7) The next passage describes all of the extra weapons they carried, ranging from fragmentation grenades to brass knuckles

The Underground Railroad was neither a railroad nor underground. It was a system of secret routes and people who helped African American Slaves escape to the North and to Canada during the 19th century. Why was it called that? The reason it was named “The Underground Railroad” was because it was figuratively underground as the network was illegal so they needed to stay “underground” to keep from being caught. The word “railroad” was used because the railroad was a rising mean for transportation and its users used railroad code to talk to each other in secret.

If the soldiers found a weapon worth carrying they would pick it up such as, captured AK-47’s and black market Uzis. All of the men in the platoon carried sentimental items. Some carried good luck items and some just souvenirs from their tour. For example Jimmy Cross carried pictures and letters from a girl that didn’t love him like he wanted. Kiowa carried a bible.

Let’s begin with the supply's that Chris packed in his backpack. The pack itself was no heavier than 30 pounds. His gear seems extremely minimal for the harsh conditions of the interior, which in April still lay buried under the winter snowpack. He was carrying a 22 caliber rifle, too small to kill large animals, cheap leather hiking boots that were neither waterproof nor insulated and finally a 10-pound bag of rice. Alex was not equipped with an ax, bug

Yellowstone national park is a magnificent place and it was discovered by to different men in very different time periods many years apart. One of the men was John Colter he joined the Lewis and Clark expedition in 1803. Tom Murphy is the other man he has been exploring the same area that John Colter did almost 200 years ago for almost 40 years. John Colter told many people about what he saw and no one seemed to believe him. Tom Murphy has been spending part of his winter in Yellowstone for the last 29 years.

People are not always born into the life they so desire, but some are willing to do whatever it takes to change their fate.This is portrayed in the stories "The Adventures of Huckleberyy Finn" by Mark Twain, and "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario.Huckleberry Finn along with Enrique work towards a better life in which they can live as they wish.The boys end goals were different, but the journey remained similar and their goals were met.The story behind each boy led them to have certain wants out of life.

For years these two men wander the endless bouty of America. John Muir and Christopher McCandless are these two wonders. Throughout their many adventures, these two men have so much in common, but they lived two very different lives. At a young age both John and Chris fell in love with nature.

The things they carried was written by Tim o’Brien an American novelist who was mostly known for fiction work. This book was published March 28, 1990 as a fiction book. This book is about flashbacks and memories of the vietnam war this story tells a lot of inside first person point of view with the main character o'brien actually being the author. Tim actually fought in vietnam which gets the reader first person point of view.

Both Tom Murphy and John Colter both had similar ways to their shelter. Tom Murphy goes camping before dark and makes easy knots to take out. He also has a two pound sleeping bag inside his fort to keep him warm, likewise John Colter also had a fort he had set up to sleep in.

On John Colter's adventure he found hot springs, bubbling mud pots, tremendous exploding geysers. Then in 1803, October 15, John Colter joined the famous expedition of Lewis and Clark in Maysville, in Kentucky. Colter walked five hundred mile. When he walked it was along the border of Yellowstone national park.

One of the next times Billy travels, it is when the aliens are kidnapping him. When he returns, Weary has died when the boxcars arrive at the camps. “So it goes,” he said. After an amount of time had passed, Billy traveled to the mental ward where he had stayed after the war, along with his death, his wedding night, and the Tralfamadorian zoo. In the ward, he is introduced to a science fiction writer and teacher named Kilgore Trout. The name of the book is the next part. The Americans were staying in a slaughterhouse that had been left abandoned for a while. When he was in Dresden he was put to work in a factory until the allies bombing destroyed the city. Billy travels once again to relive his plane crash. An air raid begins and Billy traveled