Symbolism In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

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.

Another symbol O’Brien used in the story was the superstitious items carried by the soldiers which helped them to cope with the trauma of the war. Dave Jensen carried a rabbit’s foot for good luck to protect him from the

Throughout the novel The Things They Carried, author Tim O’Brien uses literary devices to emphasize the importance of story-truth as opposed to happening-truth. Explaining the effects of war on soldiers, the novel highlights the guilt they feel after returning home as well as the physical and mental strain they must endure for the rest of their lives. The interesting twist of story-truth is that it is not a retelling of the event exactly as it happened but rather an exaggerated version meant to express the emotion felt in the moment. The three literary devices O’Brien uses to tell his truth are: point of view, syntax, and direct or indirect characterization. Alternating between first and third person point of view throughout the story O’Brien

In the short story, “The Boat” by Alistair Macleod, symbolism is used to represent an abstract idea. The boat, being a major symbol of the story was the way of life for the family. As the story goes on, the boat starts to make the family feel confined giving them a choice to leave or stay with the boat. There were symbols that impacted the story that had connection towards the boat. Chain bracelets, the father’s clothes, the books that the father read are all symbols that tied to the boat. The father's chain bracelets and clothes represent the father feeling trapped as a fisherman since he never changes out of them. We find out more about the characters and their personal connection with the boat and the other symbols and what it means to them. The family starts to fall apart due to the kids learning about the father’s books leading to them moving away from home. Symbolism is used when one thing is meant to represent something else adding meaning and emotion to the story which is well represented throughout the story.

A person’s journey can have symbols that come through everyone’s life. Symbolism is the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities. In “A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty, Eudora describes symbols by using people that come through Phoenix’s path while she’s in her journey to Natchez. Eudora uses a nickel, marble cake, big dead trees, mistletoe, and a white hunter to symbolize Phoenix’s difficulties and obstacles that she had to go through in order to get to her destination.

Not everything in the world has the easiest answer or the clearest meaning. The average citizen may not take the time to look for symbols in the real world. Those same citizens also may not notice that an object could have a hidden meaning. In the novels The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen Crane, and A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, both contain symbols that help represent the novels overall theme. Crane’s novel is about a young boy named Henry, who fights in the Civil War. He goes through many internal conflicts from deciding to run or deciding to stay and fight the enemy. Knowles’ novel is about two teenagers, Gene and Finny, who attend school during WWII. They push each other to do different things and influence each other

On the Rainy River is the name of a chapter in Tim O’Brien’s novel, The Things They Carried. O’Brien tells the story of one of his life experiences: how he almost ran from the Vietnam War and almost tried to escape to Canada. This story uses the first person as O’Brien recounts a personal story using “I.” He uses a lot of imagery, characterization, and even a bit of foreshadowing. However, the use of these devices help the story that he is telling to seem so much more true, so much more realistic. Imagery can be seen throughout the story, and it is apparent when O’Brien describes the people he is imagining.

The pebble was very important to Lt. Cross. It symbolized the complexity of the relationship he and Martha had. “It was this separate-but-together quality, she wrote, that had inspired her to pick up the pebble and to carry it in her breast pocket for several days, where it seemed weightless, and then to send it through the mail, by air, as a token of her truest feelings for him”(O’Brien pg. 9).Martha Although Cross didn’t realize her meaning, the pebble, found separate but together, was a token of love. Although this “love” wasn’t the same mutual love that Jimmy had for Martha, the relationship between them was like the pebble, separate but together. “On the march, through the hot days of early April, he carried the pebble in his mouth, turning it with his tongue, tasting sea salt and moisture” (O’Brien pg. 9). The pebble allowed Cross to imagine himself, together with Martha, often impairing his judgment during the day. That gave

The stone that he carries in his mouth and the one in his stomach contain two contrasting meanings to Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. O’Brien first introduces the stone carried by Jimmy in his mouth when he receives a letter from Martha concerning their long distance relationship. The “simple pebble, an ounce at most [was] smooth to the touch...” (O’Brien 7). In her letter, Martha states “...she had found the pebble on the Jersey shoreline, precisely where the land touched the water at high tide...” (O’Brien 7). The water line at high tide represents the single area of land where the virgin sand and ocean unite; where they meet is also the point where the ocean begins to concede back down, making this fine line a point of conversion and recession. Jimmy and Martha live on the delicate, yet promising line high tide creating a separate-but-together quality. He carries the pebble in his mouth “turning it with his tongue, tasting sea salt and moisture” (O’Brien 13) because Jimmy can visualize Martha reaching down into the sand and picking up that single pebble; he can imagine being with her in that exact moment. To Jimmy, the pebble is a reminder of Martha, but in reality the pebble proves to be endangering both himself and his men by taking away his full

Not only does he use obscene diction, he also uses extended metaphors to compare two things and how they’re related in the story. In the book, he compares the woman to the land by saying, “She was part of the land.” He is saying that the woman is a danger. He states Lieutenant Cross and Martha were pressed together and that the “pebble in his mouth was her tongue” (11). O’Brien compares the pebble and Martha’s tongue to show that Lieutenant Cross loved Martha with all his soul and that he carried her everywhere he went.

In the book, The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien, the use of imagery and descriptive words paints a picture of how the conditions in the Vietnam War actually were. Tim O’Brien served in the military from 1968 to 1970 before being relieved from duty and engaging in a writing class at Harvard University. Kiowa, a character in the famous novel, The Things They Carried, was liked by almost everyone. He was the emotional compass of Alpha Company, and the one who gets everyone else to talk. Kiowa was always comforting Tim O’Brien and the other soldiers through the hardships of the war.

In "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien, soldiers Ted Lavender and Mary Anne, both carry symbolic objects to help them endure the Vietnam war. Ted Lavender carried dope or weed also tranquilizers to take away his pain and emotional pain of the war. Mary Anne carries a human tongue necklace to represent the savagery and the changing of a person when in a war. Ted Lavender carries dope and tranquilizers, which alter your brain and body's pain tolerance. A soldier in Vietnam walking long hikes, taking lives and having the fear of death constantly on their minds, would require something to give them an 'out.'

The concept of symbolism is used by O’Brien to portray the different emotional burdens the soldiers are feeling. These symbols are mainly items that the characters carry with them while performing their tasks. One symbol that really stood out is the character Henry Dobbins and the personal item he carried. O’Brien states, “Henry Dobbins carried his girlfriend’s pantyhose wrapped around his neck as a comforter” (349). The intimates are referred to as a “comforter” which can be interpreted to mean that the article of clothing is providing warmth to Dobbins. I imagine him wearing the piece like a scarf to protect him from the war. He’s reminded of his old life with his girlfriend before being drafted for the war. Dobbins is having a sense of longing, and because of this feeling he is going to be occupied, mentally, about this emotion and it will distract him from his duties. Another symbol that caught my attention are the items that Lieutenant Jimmy Cross carried with him, the obvious items being the letters from Martha

speaker’s beloved has passed away and shows how the speaker is forever affected by the

Such symbols include hands to represent labour, cards to signify chance and taking a risk, and finally, rabbits to suggest ideas about achieving one’s hopes and dreams. Symbols are a key central device in delivering meaning, as they consistently repeated throughout the narrative and are typically associated with the novella’s many characters.