The Things They Carried

By Tim OBrien

Name: _____________________________

12th CP English

Hack

Background Knowledge:

The Things They Carried was published in 1990, twenty years after Tim OBrien returned from his tour of duty in Vietnam.

By most estimates nearly 9 million men served in the military between 1964 and 1975. Of that number, approximately 3.5 million men served in the Vietnam theatre of operations.

The draft called more than 2 million men for military service during the Vietnam era. It has also been credited with encouraging many volunteers to join the armed services rather than risk being drafted into combat.

The Things They Carried is widely regarded as one of the most significant works of literature about the Vietnam War.

Journaling:

You will be journaling throughout your reading of The Things They Carried. Your journal entries must be handed in stapled together. Each entry should be completed on the due date assigned in class and have a minimum of 7 complete sentences per entry. 20 points total

Pre-Reading Journal: (Choose 1)

Think about an object you carry with you all the time (other than electronic devices) and the importance that the object represents. You may also think back to your childhood and an object you carried around with you then.

Catalogue the items you carry in your backpack or purse (List). Choose two items (other than electronics) and explain why you have chosen to hump these items with you wherever you go.

Imagine that you are going to war and can only take three personal items. Describe each item and the reason why you want to carry it.

During Reading Journal: (choose 2)

War Letters Write a letter home to your loved ones. Why did you choose to write to this person? Why have you chosen to share the information you have? Have you hidden information from them? Why?

Spin What does it mean when OBrien writes, in his peace story, All that peace man, it felt so good it hurt. I want to hurt it back. What does this say about peace? About the Vietnam War?

Ambush/The Man I Killed Read The Man I Killed and answer the following questions: Who tells the story in this chapter? OBrien knows many intimate details about the man he killed. How does he know this? Where do the details come from?

Post Reading Journal:

Write a journal exploring your personal reactions to The Things They Carried. You need to go beyond expressing like or dislike. Make a list of emotions you felt while reading the book, and examine why. Which characters and scenes did you relate to, and which remained strange or difficult to comprehend? Was the resolution of the book satisfying? Comforting? Disturbing? Why?

Vocab List:

1. Kiley- an Australian boomerang; one side flat and the other convex

2. Selective Service- an independent federal agency that administers compulsory military service

3. Selective Service System (SSS)- an independent federal agency that administers compulsory military service

4. Conscientious Objector- one who refuses to serve in the armed forces on grounds of conscience

5. Conscription: compulsory military service

6. Peacetime: a period of time during which there is no war

7. Beret: a cap with no brim or bill; made of soft cloth

8. Topography: the configuration of a surface and the relations among its man-made and natural features

9. Militia: civilians trained as soldiers but not part of the regular army

10. enlist: join the military

Reading Questions for The Things They Carried

Chapter 1: The Things They Carried

1. In the list of all the things the soldiers carried, what item was most surprising? Which item did you find most evocative of the war? Which items stay with you?

2. In what sense does Jimmy love Martha? Why does he construct this elaborate, mostly fictional, relationship with her: What does he get out of it?

3. Why do the soldiers tell jokes about the war, about killing?

4. How is the idea of weight used and developed in the story? How do you, as a reader, feel reading those lists of weight? What effect does it have on you?

5. How has Jimmy changed by the end of the story? How will he be a different person from this point on? Whathas he learned about himself? Or to put it another way, what has he lost and what has he gained?

Chapter 2: Love

1. What could Jimmy Cross never forgive himself for?

2. How did Jimmy get a new picture of Martha playing volleyball?

3. What does Jimmy ask Tim to do when he writes his story?

4. What does he tell Tim NOT to mention?

5. What does it tell us about Tim OBrien, the narrator, that he reveals character traits of Crosss that Cross would prefer to have remain unknown?

Chapter 3: Spin

1. What do we learn about Azars character in this story?

2. How was the war NOT like a game of checkers?

3. How did the old poppa-san help the platoon? What was his special skill?

4. What does Norman Bowker wish for, more than anything?

5. What does Kiowa say when his rain dance doesnt work?

6. What did Azar do to Ted Lavenders puppy?

7. What does Azar say about his action?

8. Identify in this story moments of beauty and/or serenity.

9. How is this story structured? What can you say about all these short sections?

10. According to Tim, what are stories for?

Chapter 4: On the Rainy River

1. How did Tim feel about the Vietnam War while he was at college? Do his actions and language support the idea that he hated the Vietnam war?

2. What were Tims options once he received his draft notice? Who did he hold responsible for his situation? Who did he think should go to war instead of him?

3. What does Tim say is Elroy Berdhals role in his life? What sort of person was Elroy? How did Tim know?

4. How do the opening sentences prepare you for the story?: This is the one story Ive never told before. Not to anyone. What effect do they have on the reader?

5. Why does OBrien relate his experience as a pig declotter? How does this information contribute to the story? Why go into such specific detail?

6. At the storys close, OBrien almost jumps ship to Canada, but doesnt: I did try. It just wasnt possible. What has OBrien learned about himself, and how does he return home as a changed person?

7. In this chapter, we learn the 21-year-old O'Brien's theory of courage: Courage, I seemed to think, comes to us in finite quantities, like an inheritance, and by being frugal and stashing it away and letting it earn interest, we steadily increase our moral capital in preparation for that day when the account must be drawn down. It was a comforting theory. What might the 43-year-old O'Brien's theory of courage be?

Chapter 5: Enemies

1. Who broke whose nose?

2. What was the effect of the fight on Jensen?

3. What did Jensen finally do to resolve the conflict between them?

4. What is the irony of this chapters title?

Chapter 6: Friends

1. What was the pact that Dave Jensen & Lee Strunk made together?

2. What was Lee afraid of when he saw Jensen, and what did he make him promise?

3. The phrase that inspires these two chapters is normally characterized as friends and enemies. Why does OBrien (the author) reverse this traditional order when sequencing these chapters?

4. Using both chapters Enemies and Friends, explain how war distorts the normal social codes.

5. What is the irony of this chapters title?

Chapter 7: How to Tell a True War Story

1. According to O'Brien, how do you tell a true war story? What does he mean when he says that true war stories are never about war? In what sense is a true war story actually true? That is, in OBriens terms, what is the relationship between historical truth and fictional truth?

2. Why does this story begin with the line: This is true. How does that prepare you, as a reader, for the story? In what sense is this true?

3. Find a few of OBriens elements of a true war story. (such as, A true war story is never moral.) Why does OBrien believe these elements are important to a true war story?

4. Why is the baby water buffalo scene more disturbing than the death of one of OBriens platoon members, Curt Lemon?

5. OBrien explains that this story was not a war story. It was a love story. In what sense is this a love story? Why?

Chapter 8: The Dentist

1. Characterize Curt Lemon and why he behaves the way he does. How does this affect your reading of the previous chapter?

2. How did Curt Lemons visit to the dentist affect him?

3. What is the purpose of placing this chapter directly after How to Tell a True War Story?

Chapter 9: Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong

1. Characterize Rat Kiley. After reading the entirety of the story, why does this story seem particularly true to Rat? What meaning might he derive from it?

2. Characterize Mark Fossie and Mary Anne Bell.

3. Describe the changes in Mary Anne Bell from the time she arrived in Vietnam to be with her boyfriend until the end of the chapter. Be specific and record moments from the text (page numbers and descriptions) that demonstrate how she changed.

4. Why do you think she changed? What did the change symbolize? How long did this metamorphosis take?

5.. In what ways (note that this a plural noun) does the word, metamorphosis, apply to the transformation of Mary Anne?

6. Does it matter that Mary Anne is a woman? How so? What does the story tell us about the nature of the Vietnam War?