Things They Carried Tim O\'Brian\'s

Things They Carried

Tim O'Brian's novel "The Things They Carried" presents readers with a first-person account involving incidents from the Vietnam War. The book can to a certain extent considered to be autobiographical, in spite of the author's obvious determination to put it across as if it were fiction. The novel in all probability generated assorted commentaries from critics, given its rather puzzling character that makes readers unable to determine where reality ends and fiction begins.

O'Brian manages to bring together elements triggering unique feelings in his readers. By combining shocking events with boring episodes, the writer keeps tensions high, influencing a state of disorientation in readers. He basically wants people to realize the immorality in the Vietnam War and does not hesitate to introduce false happenings, as he feels that the people who read his book gain a better understanding of war in general if they come across this writing.

The novel consists of a series of events, both real (which actually happened to O'Brian or other individuals he learnt about) and invented (which are made up by O'Brian so as to impress readers through appalling facts and which are not necessarily untrue, considering that there is a probability for them to have happened at a certain point in the war to a certain person). Although the novel is filled with reality and fiction to a degree to which readers become confused and do not know which is which, they gradually discover the essence of the novel. The book is meant to present O'Brian's memories in a way that will emphasis their intensity. The fiction in the novel does not prevent people from realizing that there is little difference between the real O'Brian and the one in the book, with both of them having went through the same war with the same convictions and seeing the same immorality. The writer's intention is most probably that of capturing his readers, since he is afraid that they will not be impressed with the true side of the war, even if it too involves fascinating events.

The author created a character bearing his name with the intention of adding reality to the narration. This is further contributed to by the fact that the characters in the novel each have a correspondent in real life. The fiction employed by O'Brian is a form of abstract art which he expected will actually make people realize what really happened during the war. The novel can be considered to be O'Brian's interpretation of the war, bearing in mind that people are free to interpret reality in their own way. "The Things They Carried" presents readers with the Vietnam War seen from Tim O'Brian's perspective. O'Brian is an artist who simply does what is typical for an artist, thus meaning that he should not be criticized for involving fiction in his account of the war.

In spite of the fact that it is at some times obvious that the facts in the book are not true, the author seems determined to have his readers think otherwise. He does this because he is aware that the only method to make people recognize his point-of-view is if they take his stories for real. Regardless or not if one realizes that the stories in the book are just figments of imagination; the effect is likely to be the same on all readers. Similar to how Tim felt during the war and during the time he wrote the book, the people who read it are expected to feel powerful emotions. The author went through great efforts in order to have his readers feel this way. By using art, O'Brian indirectly addresses the audience's emotional side, connecting to it through his words.

The author often appears to be less interested in depicting wartime events and talks to the readers from a writer's position, sitting at a typewriter and recounting real-life episodes that he claims are constantly haunting him. The audience has the feeling that O'Brian is presenting them with significant and personal stories from his life. This slowly but surely makes readers feel that they too are connected to the war and to the narrator.

It sometimes seems that O'Brian also addresses present day issues in the book, not just happenings from the war. The bond between him and the audience is strengthened through this technique because people become aware that there is not much difference between themselves and the author, given that they too are against immoral wars. People are drawn into O'Brian's game and start to identify with the writer, since the fact that they believe to think similarly to him makes them easier to influence as the book's action progresses. At some point in the book, most readers are liable to abandon any previous convictions they had in regard to the Vietnam War in order to replace them with O'Brian's view.

The author relates to his guilt throughout the novel, insisting that one should not feel directly guilty for an unfortunate incident from the war, as it can easily be motivated through placing the blame on something or someone else. Of course, this does little to help the guilty individual in their later lives, but is essential on the battlefield. Again, the writer wants the audience to identify with him, as he is aware that it is typical for all people to be reluctant to accept that they are responsible for an ill-fated event. Just as most of O'Brian's companions did at war, people generally prefer to motivate their faults by claiming that they are innocent and that it is because of inopportune circumstances that bad things happen.