"All that crap about how if we had a pussy for president there wouldn't be no more wars. Pure garbage. You got to get rid of that sexist attitude." The role of women in the book The Things They Carried is an important one. These men have various views and feeling about the women they love, the women they hate, and the women that they may not know and can only dream of. While the text given to the ideas of women is small is stature, it is quite significant in meaning. There are three main women that enter and disrupt the lives of the Alpha company; Mary-Ann, Martha, and Henry Dobbin's girlfriend, who remains unnamed. The men carry letters, rocks, and even pantyhose to remind them of the women back home, and that which they hope to …show more content…
Henry Dobbins' carried his girlfriends' pantyhose around his neck for good luck. The symbolism behind these is more on par with what I view as reality than Jimmy's pictures. Henry realizes the implications that he is giving by wrapping pantyhose around his neck and the ideas of sex are clearly stated. Henry wanted everyone to know that he had been with this girl, and that he had taken something from her, either metaphorically or literally. The interesting part is that he continues to wear them knowing that this girl is no longer his. He keeps right on bragging, subconsciously, about the girl when she has left him for one of the boys back home. This plays an important role because Henry's girlfriend is the typical story of a man at war and his lover. She was in love, but when he's not around she moved onto a guy that didn't go to the war. The men of Alpha company greatly resent the men that did not go, and the idea that these cowards are now stealing their women is just another nail in the coffin. These men don't want to be in Vietnam, they want to be home with their girlfriends, watching movies, and making out in the backseats of cars. They didn't get to keep that option, and so they fight so that they can leave. They carry the burden of truth with them always that their girlfriends may not be there when they get …show more content…
It was a time when women were still expected to be at the dock waiting for you when you returned from war. The men would kiss them and then try and explain what it felt like to be trapped in a world that they did not understand, fighting a war with no purpose. They understood from day one that the women would not understand their problems; the nightmares. The women were as much in the minds of the men as they were in reality. They needed to be thinking of that girl back home, of the wife they would have because it gave them hope of a life beyond war and bloodshed. Women gave a reason to go to war, a reason to come back from the war, and oddly, a reason to want to return to the war. The men were in a fraternity of life, and with no women around for so long they began to rely on themselves, and no longer had the needs that were provided them by women. They wanted to play in the jungle with their friends, only this time with no guns. They missed the life that they spent together eating rations and swapping stories. When they went home they were veterans, like the old men of the World Wars. If they stayed, they were still heroes, warriors, and victims. They still loved deeply the women at home, because they
The book begins by explaining the roles that women in this time were known to have as this helps the reader get a background understanding of a woman’s life pre-war. This is done because later in the book women begin to break the standards that they are expected to have. It shows just how determined and motivated these revolutionary women and mothers were for independence. First and foremost, many people believed that a “woman’s truth was that God had created her to be a helpmate to a man” (p.4). Women focused on the domain of their households and families, and left the intellectual issues of the time and education to the men. Legally, women had almost no rights. Oppressed by law and tradition, women were restricted their choice of professions regardless of their identity or economic status. As a result, many women were left with few choices and were cornered into marriage or spinsterhood, which also had its limitations. As a spinster, you were deemed as unmarried who was past the usual age of marriage. Patronized by society, these women were left and stamped as “rejected”. On the other side, If the woman became married, all that she owned belonged to her husband, even her own existence. In exchange to her commitment, if a woman’s husband was away serving in the military or if she became a widower, she could use but not own, one-third of her husband’s property. This left her to manage the land and serve as a surrogate laborer in her husband’s absence. Needless to say, a day in a woman’s life then was filled with a full day of multi-tasking and as circumstances changed, more women had to adapt to their urban
In all, the women in The Things They Carried were important to make it apparent to the reader the different emotions that O’Brien was trying to show, remembering the fallen and learning to forgive yourself and moving on. The most prominent women within the novel used to express these points being Martha, Kathleen and Linda. They were essential in showing the key parts in O’Brien’s life that lead to the turning points which lead to the creation of this novel and his ability to be at peace with what had happened in Vietnam. He finally accepted what ad happened and embraced it instead of avoiding it.
The genre fiction brings the audience into a new experience they have never experienced before in their lives. It introduces different types of people and places one can only imagine. A fiction uses fantasy as a way to reel us into a story as if we, the audience, are part of it. In which it can have an effect on our memory because the brain uses only bits of pieces of information from our memory to tell a story we want to believe. In his novel, The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien uses fiction as a way to make Vietnam seem like a fantasy. He uses beautiful imagery, almost as if it is a fairytale, to capture the reader’s attention. He wants the reader’s to feel and see Vietnam from his vision, as more than just a war; he
"Women are made to be loved, not understood" (Oscar Wilde). In the novel The Things They Carried several female characters that are present in parts of the book are not clearly understood by the main characters. These females have some relation to the main characters whom are at war, but have a more significant symbol in the novel rather than just a character. The author, Tim O 'Brien uses these females to show different sides to the war and the interpretations that the females have compared to the males whom are living and breathing the war in order to show the contrast in ideas and opinions on the war. These females include: Lieutenant Jimmy Cross ' girlfriend back home named Martha , Mark Fossie 's girlfriend who joins in on the battle
There is a major change in the men in this novel. At first, they are excited to join the army in order to help their country. After they see the truth about war, they learn very important assets of life such as death, destruction, and suffering. These emotions are learned in places like training camp, battles, and hospitals. All the men, dead or alive, obtained knowledge on how to deal with death, which is very important to one’s life.
In Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried,” while not physically, the women still play an advocating role in the active imagination of the men throughout the story. Although it was Lieutenant Jimmy Cross’ job to protect his men, he could not help but keep on getting distracted by his unrequited love, Martha. Although Lieutenant Cross knew that his love was unreturned, he could not help but imagine that it was, making him lose focus on reality - "Lieutenant Cross gazed at the tunnel. But he was not there. He was buried with Martha under the white sand at the Jersey shore. They were pressed together, and the pebble in his mouth was her tongue. He was smiling,” (O’Brien, 5) - these kind of distractions resulting in the death of Ted Lavender. This can make the women of the story be seen as escapes or sex objects - “He wanted her to be a virgin and not a virgin, all at once,” (O’Brien, 5). However, the overall views of women in the story are positive. The women were admired, even if they were not physically there with the men. They
During the time of war, men were called away to fight and women were told to step up into their places. In the post war world, men were told to go back to their normal lives. The simple order for men to return to their jobs was easier said than done. There was no consideration of the effect of war on the men returning. Men were in constant fear of being bombed and attacked by a force that no longer existed. Some were so physically and mentally injured that recovery was slow or unattainable. Otto Dix was veteran himself and knew first hand the effect of war on people, like when men didn’t come home or were so physically and mentally injured that their day-to-day life was changed for the rest of their lifetime. Dix’s work symbolises the themes
...as Mary Ann in the novel show that women can do so much more than sew and cook. Without women, all wars would have been a lot harder. Although men tend to keep a macho facade in order to calm others (such as the women in their lives), inside they may be like glass, easy to break. A society set on the ideal stoic, fearless warrior who acts ruthlessly and saves the damsel in distress (also showing that women are weak) obviously is one where doomed to sexism. Without the comfort and inspiration, men would have deteriorated in the face of death. All and all, women provided the needed comfort, nursing, “manpower”, and love that the soldiers of Vietnam need, something that helped them endure the havoc of war. O’Brien’s expert use of the feminist lens allows the reader to know that women indeed were a powerhouse in the Vietnam war, without whom, men would have perished.
One of the clearest points in The Things They Carried is that of the importance of certain objects or feelings used by the soldiers of Alpha Company to survive the war. Jimmy Cross, the leader the group, carries a picture of a Martha, a girl who writes him from the states. Jimmy knows that there is no real relationship between the two, but he uses the picture the help keep him connected to the world he was forced to leave behind. He creates stories in his head about what will happen when he makes it back home, alive. The Bible carried by Kiowa was given to him by his father. When the book is mentioned, it is referring to the smell of the New Testament: the leather, glue, ink and paper. Kiowa carries the Bible as more of a remembrance then as a show of his faith. The stockings carried by Henry Dobbins came from his girlfriend. He carefully raps them around his neck each time the company moves out. Even after his girlfriend ends the relationship, Henry continues to wear the stockings because in his mind, their symbolism has not changed. All these items are psychological tools used by the soldiers to keep them connected to their homes and loved ones. The items are not important just because of who gave them to the soldiers, rather they are important because they seem like t...
One of the significant concepts in The Things They Carried is that of the importance of certain objects or feelings used by the soldiers of Alpha Company to survive the war. Some examples of these items are the picture of the girl carried by Jimmy Cross, the Bible carried by Kiowa, and the stockings carried by Henry Dobbins. All the items helped the respective soldier to survive from day to day and to continue fighting the war. One of the most important things that helped the soldiers is their friendship with each other. This bond that the soldiers form helped them to survive, excluded someone who was outside their group, and helped the men of Alpha Company to cope with the war after they returned to the United States.
Many of the short stories within the collection The Things They Carried, written by Tim O’Brien, can be compared and contrasted in regards to elements including theme, characters, and technique. In “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong,” the character Mary Anne Bell appears to be apparently similar to the character Martha from “The Things They Carried,” in that both are young women who have relations with a soldier in the war. Though upon further analysis of Mary Anne, it appears she is far from alike to Martha. Rather, an unexpected parallel can be drawn between the characters Mary Anne and Elroy Berdahl, from “On the Rainy River,” in that both appear to be epitomes of masculinity. The peculiar connection between these characters developed by Tim O’Brien shines a light on the ambiguity of conventional gender roles of men and women.
...though people believe that, those on the home front have it just as a bad as the soldiers, because they have to deal with the responsibilities of their husbands, there is nothing that can compare to what these men have gone through. The war itself consumed them of their ideology of a happy life, and while some might have entered the war with the hope that they would soon return home, most men came to grips with the fact that they might never make it out alive. The biggest tragedy that follows the war is not the number of deaths and the damages done, it is the broken mindset derives from being at war. These men are all prime examples of the hardships of being out at war and the consequences, ideologies, and lifestyles that develop from it.
Women were not only separated by class, but also by their gender. No woman was equal to a man and didn’t matter how rich or poor they were. They were not equal to men. Women couldn’t vote own business or property and were not allowed to have custody of their children unless they had permission from their husband first. Women’s roles changed instantly because of the war. They had to pick up all the jobs that the men had no choice but to leave behind. They were expected to work and take care of their homes and children as well. Working outside the home was a challenge for these women even though the women probably appreciated being able to provide for their families. “They faced shortages of basic goods, lack of childcare and medical care, little training, and resistance from men who felt they should stay home.” (p 434)
... and saviours of men. (88-91) This being the concluding line of the poem shows that in the end the women in the war were helpful and saved lives. The beat down the stereotypes, put on their uniforms and did their job. Overall this poem explained how incredibly false all of the stereotypes against women are.
The crying was not only because the war was lost but also for the people that died, or are dyeing, in the community. Also the crying was also from fear of what was going to happen to them now that another country had control of them. The men mostly feared that they were going to be castrated but they knew that the country would never be the same but they would be able to eat. The eels that were viewed in the river were still in the larvae stage and they were swimming upriver. This gives the man in the story hope that things will be all right and that they have the power to build a new community and help his family deal with the sickness that his daughter has. The overall meaning of the novel is that war makes things hard for the people that have to stay at home and support their soldiers. The heart of any country is with the general population and when that general population was hit with something unknown it did not only shock the rest of the country but it made the country wonder if they were strong enough. People will pull through for themselves and family before they think about what is going to happen to the way that they live. This novel shows the power and curiosity of the human spirit. It does accomplish what it set out to do, show the effect on the losing side of