Theme Of Innocence In 'The Things They Carried'

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Innocence gained at birth, yet lost in seconds. The story of the lovers whose innocence was stolen away is a fierce one in The Things They Carried. Mary Ann Bell and Mark Fossie, a fairy tale come to life. Mary Ann started stealing the soldiers lives in Vietnam, Mark Fossie became uncomfortable, yet proud of her eagerness and fearless quest for knowledge. To Rat Kiley, “...Mary Ann made you think of all those girls back home, how clean and innocent they all are, how they’ll never understand any of this...” (O'Brien 113). To the men she was: dreams, youth, an escape, the future all in one pink trimmed girl. Mainly, however, to her boyfriend, Mark Fossie, she was his future, his connection life after the war. Rat Kiley describes Mark Fossie as “proud, yes, but also amazed. A different person, it seemed, and he wasn’t sure what to make of it.” (O'Brien 98). When Mary Ann changed, and ultimately vanished, it is as if the war stole every piece of Mark Fossie. Using this sophisticated complex love story enhances the sense of lost innocence.

In the beginning Mary Ann and Mark contemplated what they would look like in the future, yet as the days went by her mindset changed. She became more interested on her new surroundings and less focused on her future as his wife. It was then that Mark Fossie began to mention her going home. He had been holding on to their future for his sanity, much to Rat Kiley's dismay "man, you must be deaf. She’s already gone" (O'Brien 107). However, she refused to leave. She claimed to be happier than ever in her life. Soon, the detachment grew between them. Mary Ann was immersing herself in Vietnam. Then one night she vanished with the Greenies. She was gone for weeks, one night Rat Kiley sa...

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...bol of their innocence, and just as she became "dangerous and was ready for the kill"(O'Brien 111), the soldiers changed to become mysterious and cynical because of the war. A piece of the love story that vanished; the dreams and futures of the soldiers. They became tainted forever with terrifying images burning through their minds. “‘What happened to her, Rat said, was what happened to all of them. You come over clean and you get dirty and then afterward it’s never the same” (O'Brien 109). The things they saw; the things they lived, they couldn't retell, for no one would believe it. Mary Ann Bell and Mark Fossie represented the relationships lost due to the war, the loved ones that had forgotten or who would never understand the changes. They represented the dreams that had changed and been lost. They were the innocence and naivety turned to disparagement.

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