Lt. Cross's Unrequited Love

The central theme of the story is the age-old conflict of life and death. On a more personal level with First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the round character and protagonist of "The Things They Carried", it is a conflict of love, his antagonist and of war.

He had touched these items day by day, wondering who had been beside her while she had retrieved the pebble from the beach, or who placed the shadow in the photo of her. His mind would race day and night, making it difficult for him to provide adequate attention on the war. Cross “would yell at his men to spread out the column, to keep their eyes open, but then he would slip away into daydreams, just pretending, walking barefoot along the Jersey shore; with Martha, carrying nothing” (396). Cross would hope for nothing more than to be carrying nothing. These physical objects weighed him down terribly after the death of Ted Lavender. He had loved Martha much more than his men, and due to his overpowering love he had lost one of them. The pebble was not only a symbol of importance to Cross as he dealt with the trauma of war, but as the physical weight he carried due to the death of his man. These physical symbols helped to identify a shift in the story when Cross decides to open up and make a change to the way he is coping with the war after Lavender’s death. This “wouldn’t help Lavender, he knew that, but from this point on he would comport himself as an officer” (403).

In “The Things They Carried,” by Tim O’Brien the theme of “carrying” both physical and emotional objects by the main characters can be found in the novel. While these men carry the same standard physical army gear, they differentiate with personal tangible and intangible items. From Lieutenant Cross’s responsibility of his men, to Henry Dobbin’s girlfriend’s pantyhose for its magic, each man faced the war with these things attached.

One of the most overlooked aspects in the life of a soldier is the weight of the things they carry. In Tim O'Brien's story, "The Things They Carried," O'Brien details the plight of Vietnam soldiers along with how they shoulder the numerous burdens placed upon them. Literally, the heavy supplies weigh down each soldier -- but the physical load imposed on each soldier symbolizes the psychological baggage a soldier carries during war. Though O'Brien lists the things each soldier carries, the focal point centers around the leader, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, and his roles in the war. Lt. Cross has multiple burdens, but his emotional baggage is

Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried” is an interesting story that takes place during the Vietnam War. O’Brien writes in third person omniscient and is only in the head of the main character; First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. In the story O’Brien describes not only the physical baggage each soldier carries, but hints at the emotional baggage as well. With this, readers get to see exactly what goes on in the soldier’s minds, but also Cross’s mind and what kind of character he is. Throughout the story Cross confesses profusely about loving Martha, who in return doesn’t see him as a lover but a friend. Martha is Cross’s friend and crush who constantly writes to him. Because Cross is so infatuated with Martha, she clouds his mind almost 24/7. In the beginning of the story all Cross could think of is Martha, however because of this he

There were numerous times were people would try and pressure him into a decision by noting there was no time for indecision. He could keep his calm, cool manner and think a situation through before reacting. I think that being able to think things through no matter the situation speaks volumes to what a leader needs to be. He also showed that not every situation needed to be thought out at that time. He was known to have thought of contingency plans prior to actions as to cut out reaction time needed due to him thinking it through before implementation and able to switch tactics on the fly. He showed this attribute multiple times but one example sticks out in my mind’s eye. We had set up a forward position in Ramadi in what we thought was a hostile minimal area. Once we had set up our hasty area for command and control of an impending raid we came under small arms fire and a mortar attack. He had set up sectors of fire and counter fire areas before we had set up even though we were told numerous times that it was not needed. Due to his intellect, he had taken it into advisement but had planned on it not being as such and we were able to respond in kind and repel any such attack. I learned from him that no matter what happens you need to think things through and show a strong intellect so your soldiers are confident in your decisions and believe in you.

War alters Cross as a person emotionally. He knows he cannot keep running and he instead begins to take his roles as a leader more seriously. Something that he must do if he and his platoon are going to survive.

In the war, it often thought that soldiers, go to a country to keep peace in that part of the world. Unfortunately that is not always the case;during these tours ,soldiers die everyday from cultural violence,and misguided information by their superiors and in this story that has occurred. Jimmy Cross is characterized as a man who is filled with emotion and the loss of one of his men. “Cross carried a compass, maps,...He carried a strobe light and the responsibility for the lives of his men.” (Tim O’Brien pg. 4) Cross felt directly responsible for his men. Death lead Cross to the realization of who Cross truly is, and who he will become. Jimmy Cross has to find himself one way or another, when he is ready to face the truth is completely up to

In the first chapter in the book, titled The Things They Carried, Jimmy Cross is one of the many examples throughout the novel in where a soldier has a way to escape from the realities of war. Cross, who is a lieutenant in his company, carries two photographs of a girl named Martha whom he truly loves and wishes nothing else but to be with her in the end. Along with the photographs, he carries letters from Martha herself as well as her good-luck pebble in his mouth. Martha’s letters has a huge impact on Cross’s escape on reality because those letters do not mention war at all but for him to stay safe. All of these items comforts Cross and eventually reminisce about the times when he was back home with Martha away from any war. He relives a moment when he was with Martha at the movies, and then remembers that he touched her knee but Martha did not approve and pushed his hands away. Now while he’s in Vietnam, he does nothing but fantasizes taking her to her bed, tying her up, and touching that one knee knee all night long.

Lieutenant Cross deals with many conflicts throughout the short story. The author tells us “precise details of what the men carry (down to brand names and weights of objects listed in ounces) versus the more personal” (Farrel). This describe that the external conflicts are focus more on, versus the soldier’s personal issues and that itself is a problem because no struggle should be minimized. One major conflict he deals with is his inability to take his mind off of a girl he carries pictures of named Martha. Each soldier carries something in their rucksack to help them cope with their realities of war. “To carry something was to “hump” it, as when Lieutenant Jimmy Cross humped his love for Martha up the hills and through the swamps. In its intransitive form, “to hump” meant “to walk,” or “to march,” but it implied burdens far beyond the intransitive” (952). This indirectly gives the reader an illustration of how the soldiers carry some type of stress they are dealing with; it could be the stress of being away from someone you love or the guilt of being apart from him or her. Cross felt

“The Things They Carried” is about Cross and the soldiers under him and their activities in Vietnam during the war. The story begins with Cross introducing the object of his infatuation, Martha. He then goes on to list, in detail, materials, gear, and emotions that were “humped” by him and his men. Cross seems to be a day dreamer since he often thinks about Martha when he should be focusing on his men, the mission, and their surroundings. Cross also loses one of his soldiers, Ted Lavender. Cross, being the leader, blames himself for being off in la-la land with Martha rather than focusing on the reality he and his soldiers are in. Burdened with the guilt, he throws himself into the act of digging a foxhole, using the rage to fuel him. Cross, then, partakes on a sort of self-examination where he realizes all of the negative things that have happened but could have been

Every one of us has experienced a strong emotional fear, and in that moment of stress, we learn more about who we are. The short story “The Things They Carried”, by Tim O’Brien, follows the lives of soldiers trying to survive the emotional and physical stresses of the Vietnam War. Throughout the story, O’Brien juxtaposes the physical weight of the supplies that the soldiers must carry with the immeasurable weight of their intense emotional experiences. The theme of “The Things They Carried” is the burden of fear, which O’Brien portrays through the counter-weight of objects the soldiers cling to for consolation and escape. Some men turn to objects that remind them of love, no matter how unlikely it is that they are loved back. Other men

In the story “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, Lt. Cross is a young soldier who like many others was drafted into the war. Though he is the leader of the Alpha Company, he doesn’t show it, he is not emotionally nor patriotically devoted. Lt. Cross was distracted from the war that was going on by his feelings for Martha whose letters and photos were a fantasy to him. “Whenever he looked at the photographs, he thought of new things he should’ve done” (O’Brien 470). As the war goes on Cross becomes a dynamic character. The death of Ted Lavender served as a reality check to Lt. Cross and he began to

One of the main things that is never really mentioned, but is pointed out many times is how the main character carries the grief of each one of his men’s deaths. Many times, Jimmy Cross, would describe the weight of an item

Issues of war ripped through families, cities, and eventually, the entire country. By making the decision to go to the war, some would place the distinction of bravery on Cross. He, however, felt like a coward. For he had given in to the society around him and their pressures. Instead of following his heart and staying true to his morals, Cross took the easy way out. By fighting in the war, he avoided the criticism and ridicule which marred draft dodgers and the lifetime of embarrassment that was sure to follow.