In the book The Things, They Carried by Tim O'Brien explores the life of a soldier and the emotional baggage they carry throughout their lives. The majorities of the people looks at soldiers and see strong and confident people. It is rare for us to think about the traumatic memories that they have to endure during the war. Some of their friends die, they get injured, and at times the pain and suffering they experience are much more massive than the different weapons they carry. According to O’ Brien during the Vietnam War, the soldiers faced the worst of times that led to emotional and physical burdens that they had the carry. Apart from the standard combat pack, there are intangible burdens that the soldiers had to deal with when reading the book. The Vietnam War developed an excellent history for the young Americans who went to war (DiCicco). They were expected to adapt to the Vietnamese language and culture. Further, for safety purpose, they learned how to use coded phrases, profanity, words, and initials to describe the war while hiding their emotional fears. The paper seeks to define emotional baggage of war as explored in the book The Things They Carried which compares the physical items with emotions.
The term emotional baggage during the Vietnam War could refer to a variety of things that emphasizes that war goes beyond the physical stuff carried. According to O’Brien, the soldiers carried emotional baggage of their dead friends, shameful memories, shared secrets, and reputations. However, the emotions were essential to their lives as it made them stronger and determined to overcome the consequences of the war. While heading to the Vietnam War, the soldiers would discard some of the things they carried. Lieutenant Jimmy was aware that the items taken by the soldiers were bulky, but they had a significant effect on them (O’Brien). He encouraged the soldiers to discard the things he knew they would be supplied during the war period so that they can reduce the weight of the baggage.
During the times of war, the majority of the people focus on the weapons and the weight of the combat pack carried. The author uses the physical loads of the heavy supplies carried on soldiers should symbolize the emotional baggage they have to bear during the war. Unlike the stories of war, the author seeks to relate the experiences of the soldiers with the things carried. Focusing on Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, O’ Brien lists the different weights he has to carry but of all the things in his mind is the heaviest baggage because it is overwhelmed by emotions of love. His emotional baggage is shadowed by his unrelenting guilt concerning the death of Ted Lavender and unending love and obsession towards Martha. His feelings of love make him daydream about Martha while at War. In the book, the author states that Jimmy Cross “carried letters from Martha (434). His thoughts and actions are greatly influenced by Martha because in most of the paragraphs we see Jimmy imagining how the romantic camping trips will be beautiful with her in the mountains. However, his emotions towards Martha are also clouded by sadness because she does not seem to have similar romantic feelings towards the Lieutenant. Jimmy Cross is hopeful that someday they will be together, in his thoughts he always questioned if Martha was still a virgin (355). The idea that Martha could be a virgin bears a significant value of her love because it shows she is pure.
Going to war is an issue of life and death for the soldiers. Therefore, the team is expected to prepare efficiently for them to survive. There are some everyday items that people expect a soldier to carry during the war for defense. When going to fight the majority of the soldiers take articles that help them to preserve their identity, for example, a Christian is likely to carry the Bible. Other items include moccasins, different gifts, or even letters like Lieutenant Jimmy did. Further, soldiers may bring things to remind them of their homes. Such questions give them hope to survive because things are awaiting them home. Soldiers carry pictures of their loved ones, slingshots, or even letters addressed by particular persons (DiCicco). Apart from the physical items, the emotional baggage is the heaviest of all. The soldiers have to bear the grief of a member dying, days field with terror, longing to go home, and love. Even though in most of the films and textbooks always claim the warriors are firm and sturdy there are moments when the soldiers carry the shame of being cowards. The scene of war could create some emotions of fear or freezing forcing a person to hide or run away from the opponents for them to survive. The reality of war is that the soldiers were afraid that they could die anytime that the worst was that they wouldn’t show it (Brooks). The emotional baggage of death could not be mentioned; they even used phrases like ‘flat fuck fell” to mean some had died.
The story navigates around the Alpha Company soldiers who went for the Vietnam War. Along with the protection items they carried at least twenty pounds weighted items. Some of the things they carried include the Military Payment Certificates, lighters, salt tablets, P-38 can openers and other valuables (Guttman). The personal details they carried symbolized their desire to escape from reality through the figurative sense. Different characters take unique items that could relate to different emotion baggage. Michell Sanders was afraid of the fact that death is ahead and he may not have sex again thus he carries condoms along. Ted Lavender opts to take marijuana and tranquilizers to help ease the pain and suffering incase he is injured during the war. Henry Dobbins was so close to her mother because of the meals she prepares. He carries with him peaches to remind him of his mother. Other characters like Norman Bowker carry a diary in which he narrated the horror that he experiences during the war period while Rat Kiley used his imagination to forget about the events in the war. Each of the soldiers had emotional baggage that influenced what they carried to war. The items preserved their identity and helped them to keep touch with the reality.
During the Vietnam War, the participant's minds live with the thought that they could die anytime and this would emerge baggage of fear for their survival. O’ Brien uses the death of Ted Lavender to expand on the storyline concerning the Vietnam War. He states that a week before the death of Ted Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is sent a charm by his wife to signify good luck. His death creates a guilty conscious on Lieutenant's mind because he did not fulfill his responsibility well. In Lieutenant’s mind, he could have been thinking if only he did not allow Ted to wander away from the rest of the soldiers he would not have been killed by the sniper bullet. Jimmy claimed that his laxity among the soldiers is what influenced Ted not to adhere to his orders. Consequently, he made a resolution to tighten the security measures and discipline the soldiers. The majority of the soldiers enjoyed working under Lieutenant Cross because of how he treated them (O’Brien). He did not place many restrictions on how the soldiers should behave, they were allowed to make jokes and they general described him as friendly.
At this point, the emotional baggage of guilt becomes heavy on Jimmy, and he starts making critical resolutions. One of the solutions he comes up with is switching off all his emotions of love against her wife. He claimed that his infatuations and daydreaming was distracting his capacity as a leader. At a young age, he was forced to choose his work as an officer and a leader over her wife. The idea was helpful in reducing the feeling of guilt as he nurtured himself to being a more responsible person. The emotional burden he felt became more cumbersome than the items they carried not only for him but also the other soldiers. The young men who accompanied the Lieutenant to war went to fight in an unfamiliar land and their fate to survive was at stake.
Works Cited
Brooks, Rosa. . ,. How Everything Became War and the Military Became Everything: Tales from the Pentagon. New York: Print., 2016. .
DiCicco, Jonathan M., and Benjamin O. Fordham. ""The Things They Carried: Generational Effects of the Vietnam War on Elite Opinion." ." International Studies Quarterly (2018).
Guttman, Jon. ""Vietnam War US " Allied Combat Equipments." ." Vietnam, (Apr. 2018, Academic OneFile): 60.
O’Brien, Tim. "The Things They Carried. 1990.". New York: Broadway , 1998.
