Analysis of The Things Soldiers Carry in Tim O’brien’s The Things They Carried

The Things They Carried is a touching short story and helps us to remember the lives of those who gave so much for our benefit. This story is about the soldiers of the Alpha company in the Vietnam War who each carried something into battle, whether it be tangible like candy or more sentimental like fear. There is one soldier that particularly stuck out more than the others. His name is Jimmy Cross and he is known for writing to his coveted classmate, Martha. He has a feeling of great guilt which he feels the most when his friend Ted Lavendar suddenly has an end to his life. I would argue that every person, whether they admit to it or not, is carrying something whether tangible or not. For soldiers, it may be more of a feeling but for some, it may also be something as tangible as a picture of their family. I would also argue that sometimes these items are not recognized and taken care of properly. In this day and age, we have shifted to the thought that we need to do everything for ourselves but some just need extra help or need to know that someone cares about their well being. For the purpose of this essay, I will be arguing those points with the soldiers in mind. Soldiers often carry things that are meaningful to them when they go into war. These items might include things such as a picture of family, candy, or a special collector’s item that resonates with them. Pictures, in my opinion, could be good or bad for a soldier to carry. The picture could serve as a wonderful reminder of home and the people they love there.

For some soldiers, however, having a picture would make things more difficult because they miss home. Pictures also serve the purpose of taking your family and loved ones with you. My grandfather, who was in the Vietnam War, knew the only thing he needed while at war was a picture of our family. This was a reminder to him that we back home sent our love and wishes that he would be safely returning home. Candy was an item that many soldiers carried. It was cheap, good, and just what they needed after a hard day of fighting.

Candy is often the item that is requested the most or given the most when we hold drives for the military. Candy also was used in the war if a soldier got injured and there really was not anything to do to help them then they were given candy, specifically m and ms. In the story, The Things They Carried, the doctor carries candy or chocolates for when these injuries do occur. I never thought about how chocolate could help an injury but it worked wonders on these soldiers. The special collector's items could be anything really. If it was important to the soldiers and they had room they took it. This could be a teddy bear or trinket from someone or somewhere that was special to them. I have thought about if Uncle Sam called my name what I would bring and a teddy bear just comes right to my mind. These soldiers do not get a warning usually, they are called and thrown into the chaos of what we call war. This means, they only have a few moments to decide what is the most important item for them to bring. This item is important to the soldier and their family which really helps when the war that day has just been crappy.

All these items mentioned above provide a sense of what soldiers need or want to have at war. The least we can do for theses soldiers is try to insure they are as comfortable as possible while away at war and post-war. I believe PTSD which is post-traumatic stress disorder, is so real and can affect so many soldiers but each in their own unique or personal way. We as a society need to be ready when a soldier comes home to help them with whatever they seem to be struggling with. In an article by the US National Library Medicine, it discusses the real effects of PTSD and the results which are not always the best outcome for our soldiers. The article says “The stress that results from traumatic events precipitates a spectrum of psycho-emotional and physiopathological outcomes.” As you can see from these articles one of the non-tangible items carried by the soldiers was without a doubt, stress. These soldiers felt stress very often in the active combat which makes complete sense considering what they were doing. Stress was something carried into the war and often times it came right back out with them.

Although I would argue that if you go to war you know beforehand that there will be stress, however when you are done you realize what stress really means. For soldiers, they may also think they are too tough to say they are stressed or whatever they are feeling because of how they had to handle it in the military. We as a society should try our best to pay attention to these feelings and try to combat them. Another non-tangible thing carried by the soldiers is guilt. Many of the soldiers by the time they are done they are guilty of enjoying war things more than the things worth way more at home. Many are also guilty to go home intact when they know that their fellow soldiers have gone back home with Jesus. They look in the mirror and are only missing a leg or arm but can't help to feel guilty for that when they know so many others are in way worse conditions.

To give you a visual of this, one of my favorite songs is “Still a Soldier” by Trace Adkins. There is one specific line that is relevant and just resonates with this idea of guilt felt by these soldiers. That line is “And when a brother falls, there’s a part of him that does too.” This line is so profound and explains that guilt of coming home intact while some don’t make it home. The soldiers also carry tangible things. I have already mentioned a few but something I think we tend to overlook is how much weight they carry on the backs and in their hands when heading out to war. Soldiers tended to carry eighty-five plus pounds just on their back plus whatever gun they needed in war. They had to be ready and needed all their gear with them cause they could not just drive back to their house and get what they needed.

Obviously this left effects on them causing their backs and probably their whole body to be completely sore. The soldiers definitely were ready to sit down at the end of the day and remember there were no off days for soldiers. Now earlier in my argument I mentioned the fact that people, specifically soldiers could be carrying something but neglect or refuse to talk about it. This could be for a variety of different reasons and we need to respect the fact that they don't want to talk but make sure they are doing okay. Have you ever wondered why soldiers never or very rarely talk about their war experiences? In an article titled “Costs of War” by the Watson Institute at Brown College, the author talks about the difficult transfer from war life to immediate civil life. It says “Although they are highly motivated to work hard and move up corporate hierarchies veterans were frustrated by having to start in low paying entry-level positions and felt as if they were starting over completely.” These soldiers are overwhelmed and just want to come home to a sustainable job. I would also argue that these soldiers who don't talk about the war are those that did it for the seriousness of fighting for their country and not for fame and fortune. This could be another huge thing the soldiers carry. That would be the weight of our country and the weight of their decisions and how they impact our everyday lives. The soldiers made important decisions regarding our safety and carried the chance of making the wrong decision. There was a good amount of guilt felt by the soldiers because of how they had to deal with certain aspects of wars.

Now back to the story. This story has a theme of the soldiers carrying fear as an item. This is such a real feeling I bet for these soldiers. The rush of adrenaline is probably enough fear alone and then you add having to see it in person. The fear these soldiers felt left an eternal mark on them which as I mentioned above could be another reason that they don't want to talk about the war. These soldiers also knew they had enemies and I don’t know about you but I would be scared of my enemy especially if they had a gun or weapon. Fear is a real thing and has a real impact on people for a long time, sometimes even a lifetime. So you might ask what we as a society can do to combat this problem of the soldiers basically carrying the fear and guilt of the USA. We need to be conscious of the soldiers in our lives and make sure they have the things they need to have a smooth transition back to civilian life. It is important that we realize these feelings are real and realize that they leave long-lasting impressions and thoughts. We can also donate to the soldiers when they have their drives. A soldier could always use a pick me up whether it be candy or a blanket.

They do so much, the least we can do is help them feel as comfortable as possible. In conclusion, you might be wondering, so what? Why does it matter what the soldiers are carrying? Well, I will tell you. It matters because they have given everything and the last thing they should be feeling is guilty of coming home intact while their buddy never made it back home. We need to remember that what these soldiers are carrying can be combated and is also similar to things we can carry. This is a meaningful reminder, that if something isn’t right for our soldiers, we as Americans, need to help the soldiers to fix it. This is shown in the story through the m and ms and the soldier who carries letters which to us mean nothing but to him they mean the world which more importantly means someone cares for this soldier. All in all, soldiers carry many things whether tangible or not. These things leave impressions and feelings which can last a lifetime.