Lieutenant Jimmy Cross Character Analysis: The Things They Carried
This essay analyzes Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the central character in Tim O'Brien's short story "The Things They Carried." It examines how Cross embodies the naivety of youth and inexperience common among Vietnam-era soldiers, while also exploring the qualities that distinguish him from his fellow platoon members. The paper traces the emotional weight Cross carries — particularly his unrequited love for Martha — and charts his transformation following the death of comrade Ted Lavender. Through the symbolism of carried objects, the essay argues that Cross undergoes a journey from boyish sentimentality to a harder, more self-aware sense of duty and leadership.
- Introduction: The Things Soldiers Carry: Context for O'Brien's story and its narrative strategy
- Jimmy Cross and His Fellow Soldiers: Cross's shared youth and inexperience with other soldiers
- Differences Between Jimmy Cross and the Other Soldiers: How carried objects reveal Cross's distinct personality
- Martha's Influence on Lieutenant Cross: Martha as symbol of home, love, and emotional distraction
- Coping with the Death of Ted Lavender: Guilt, transformation, and the burning of photographs
- Conclusion: From Boyhood to Manhood: Four forces driving Cross's coming-of-age arc
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What makes this paper effective
- Textual evidence is woven throughout the analysis, with direct quotations from O'Brien used to support every major claim about character and theme.
- The paper moves logically from general context (the platoon as a whole) to the specific (Cross's individual psychology), giving the argument a clear narrowing focus.
- The symbolic reading of physical objects — photographs, letters, a pebble — as windows into character psychology is consistently applied and gives the paper thematic unity.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates character-based close reading: it uses concrete textual details (the weight of weapons, the contents of backpacks, the burning of photographs) as evidence for abstract psychological and thematic claims about guilt, maturation, and the burden of war. This technique effectively bridges plot summary and literary interpretation.
Structure breakdown
The essay opens with context about the short story and its narrative strategy, then states a thesis about Cross's journey from youth to maturity. Subsequent sections compare Cross to his fellow soldiers, isolate his distinguishing traits, examine Martha's symbolic role, and culminate in a detailed reading of how Ted Lavender's death triggers Cross's transformation. The conclusion ties these elements together under the paper's central coming-of-age argument.
Introduction: The Things Soldiers Carry
The Things They Carried is the first in a series of interconnected short stories depicting soldiers' lives during wartime. The stories are based on author Tim O'Brien's own experience with war, and his own character sometimes appears within the writings. The central short story revolves around a platoon of soldiers fighting in Vietnam and the things they carried — not only their physical possessions, but also what they carry in their minds.
O'Brien begins his narration by simply and plainly presenting the material things the soldiers carry: supplies, weapons, bandages, and medicines. Each character carries those things that define his role within the platoon. Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the leader of the platoon, carries maps, compasses, and the responsibility for his men's safety. Medic Rat Kiley carries medical supplies, the responsibility for the platoon's health, and the duty to aid the wounded. Each carried item is objectively presented and weighed so as to emphasize how much it burdens the carrier. "The weapon weighed 7.5 pounds unloaded, 8.2 pounds with its full 20-round magazine. The riflemen carried anywhere from 12 to 20 magazines…adding on another 8.4 pounds at minimum, 14 pounds at maximum." (O'Brien)
Aside from military items, each soldier's backpack also contains things that define his individuality and pre-war existence. Sentimental Lieutenant Cross carries pictures, letters, and a pebble from Martha; religious Kiowa carries a Bible from his father; and nervous Ted Lavender carries marijuana and tranquilizers. In addition to the military and personal items they possess, the soldiers carry the burden of their loves, desires, hopes, aspirations, fears, hatreds, and desperations. These are the things that define each soldier's essence, build up his character, and reveal his true self.
Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried depicts Jimmy Cross's journey from boyhood to manhood and reveals a character marked by youth's naivety, unrequited love, war, death, and the feeling of guilt.
References
O'Brien, T. The Things They Carried. Broadway, December 29, 1998.
Nielson, J. Warring Fictions: American Literary Culture and the Vietnam War Narrative. University Press of Mississippi, December 1998.
Talbott, J. E. "Soldiers, Psychiatrists and Combat Trauma." Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Volume 27, Number 3, 1997.
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