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Tim O Brien Use Contrasts And Contradictions In The Things They Carried

Decent Essays

In “The Things they Carried,” Tim O’Brien uses contrasts and contradictions to reveal the impact that war had on people throughout the novel. The war had a great impact on all the characters, however, it affected Tim O’Brien, Mitchell Sanders, and Mary Anne the greatest. O’Brien is affected by the war the most, especially in the fact that he was the one who wrote a book about it. He begins the novel by describing experiences of him and his comrades. He discusses a moment in which Mitchel Sanders had gone home after a time in the war, and was having a perfect life. However, he wasn’t satisfied, he said, “All that peace, man, it felt so good it hurt.” This showed the effect that the war had on him. It is expected that he would be happy now …show more content…

The story was about the time when he found out that he had to go to the war, however, he didn't want to go to it, so he decided to leave the United States. He stated his feelings about the war by saying, “I was no soldier” (41), to show that he knew nothing about it. The way he was raised didn't expose him to the types of things that he’d face in war. In addition, he had a whole future ahead of him due to how well he had done in school. He went on to say that he remembered “the rage in [his] stomach” (42), which showed the feelings of unease that he felt. Although, it seemed as if he was going to leave for Canada, he stated, “I was a coward. I went to the war” (61). This was an unexpected event due to the way he felt about war in general. He went against his views and decided to go to war instead. This was significant because it created the beginning of a different life. It was the start of something …show more content…

Mark Fossie worked in a medical detachment in the mountains west of Chu Lai with Rat Kiley. The mountains was calm most of the times, there was really no action, except when a wounded soldier needs care. So Fossie decided to bring his high school sweetheart to Vietnam, Mary Anne Bell. “At time she gave off a kind of come-and-get me energy, coy and flirtatious” (45). She was a nice outgoing and attractive girl who gets along with everybody. She was also curious. Her curiosity would later reveal her purpose in life. She would first ask small questions about the weapons and the country. She would then ask if she could go in one of the villages to see the natives, she acted as though as she was on vacation instead of being in a middle of a warzone. The longer she stayed she started to have admiration for Vietnam and wouldn’t want to leave even though Fossie insisted. Her curiosity ultimately led her to discover the dark parts of Vietnam when she went with the greenies. Mary Anne was never the same after that, she was consumed by Vietnam, “I want to eat this place. Vietnam. I want to swallow the whole country - the dirt, the death - I want to eat it and have it inside me” (111). Mary Anne decided to live in Vietnam and would kill anything that she sees. She turned from a nice young girl to a cold blooded

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