Theme Of Symbolism In The Things They Carried

Life can come to a stop periodically when a person is troubled by burdens. For a considerable amount of people it may be too difficult to live in the present while constantly thinking about the past, and because of this, are unable to move on. These difficulties can be burdens that they have been carrying for a long time or even just recently. In the short story, “The Things They Carried,”Tim O’Brien uses symbolism, ambiguity, and a non-linear narrative structure to illustrate emotional burdens. 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

The character Kiowa, who is a Native American soldier part of Lieutenant Cross’ platoon, seemed to be portrayed with varying emotions after Lavender’s demise. Once the body is taken away, Kiowa shared how Lavender died: “then they marched for several hours through the hot afternoon, and then at dusk, while Kiowa explained how Lavender died” (353). Kiowa sharing this event a few hours after it occurred seems a bit strange because usually when an individual dies, there would be mourning for the fallen soldier. With this in mind, Kiowa seems to be in awe about what just took place because towards the end of the same page, Kiowa describes what happened to Lavender once again: “Like cement. Kiowa whispered in the dark. I swear to God—boom-down” (353). Another important detail worth mentioning is that Kiowa is a devoted Christian so the fact that he “swore to God” backs up the statement that he is surprised. For this reason, he would have censored his word choice. But during that night, Kiowa’s emotions about the event seem to shift into more selfish ones: “he wanted to care [. . .] And yet when he closed his eyes, [. . .] all he could feel was the pleasure of having his boots off and the fog curling in around him and the damp soil and the Bible smells and the plush comfort of night” (354). Kiowa seems to be unable to care about what happened to Lavender because his thoughts started to shift from the death to how great he felt sleeping. I interpret this as being self-centered because Kiowa seems to be more concerned with his well-being and the fact that he is alive in the moment. Kiowa will carry the image of what happened to Lavender with him, but he will not feel remorse for the dead