The Role Of Women In The Things They Carried - 1203 Words

The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien is a collection of multiple short stories about Tim O’Brien’s, recollections of his time as a soldier in the Vietnam War. This novel depicts the experiences and effects of the Vietnam war on the lives of the American soldiers. O’Brien informs the readers that the stories may not be completely true or moral but that’s the point of a true war story. In the novel, O’Brien introduces characters by the items they carried. The thoughts of women or items women had given to these men were often recognized in the book. O’Brien incorporated a few female characters such as Martha, Mary Anne Bell, and Henry Dobbins’s girlfriend in order to show the influence they all had on the men in the novel. Though the†¦show more content†¦He destroys his connections to the past and becomes focused on the present. He gives up all that had and would distract him from war. He burns the letters and photos th at was given to him by Martha. Another character who used fantasies of women as a mental escape from the war happening around them was Henry Dobbins. Dobbins carried his girlfriend pantyhose. He would wrap his girlfriend pantyhose around his neck before heading into ambush. He liked â€Å"putting his nose into the nylon and breathing in the scent of his girlfriend’s body; he liked the memories this inspired; he sometimes slept with the stockings up against his face, the way an infant sleeps with a flannel blanket, secure and peaceful† (111). The pantyhose symbolized home, faith, and hope. The stockings allowed Dobbins to recall memories of more pleasant times when he was with his girlfriend, away from the war. The story of Mary Anne Bell also portrayed how women were used in coping with the war. Mary Anne was the girlfriend of the soldier Mark Fossie. Mark Fossie was assigned to a location in Vietnam that lacked supervision, which allowed the soldiers to have a small sense of freedom they felt they had back home. Fossie invites his girlfriend, Mary Anne, over to Vietnam because he believed and thought she was going to make being in the war better for him. Women also symbolized how man can be changed by the war. The story of Mary Anne Bell is fitting for thisShow MoreRelatedThe Role of Women in The Things They Carried Essay1361 Words   |  6 Pageswars. Pure garbage. You got to get rid of that sexist attitude. The role of women in the book The Things They Carried is an important one. These men have various views and feeling about the women they love, the women they hate, and the women that they may not know and can only dream of. While the text given to the ideas of women is small is stature, it is quite significant in meaning. There are three main women that enter and disrupt the lives of the Alpha company; Mary-Ann, Martha, andRead MoreWomen Roles in The Things They Carried Essay952 Words   |  4 PagesIn this book there are three major women Linda, Martha, and Mary Anne. Lindas role is positive yet very saddening because she in a way has given Tim OBrien the power to tell stories so in depth using memories. Mary Annes role is encouraging because she comes to Vietnam and throughout the journey she discovers herself; she redefines the typical role of women. Marthas role in this book could be considered positive because she is keeping up Jimmy Crosss morale but, at the same time it c ould beRead MoreWomen and Their Role in The Things They Carried by Tim Obrien888 Words   |  4 PagesThe Things They Carried Women and their Role in The Things They Carried Within the book The Thing’s They Carried, the stories of the male soldiers and their dealings with the Vietnam War. However he also delves into the stories of the women and how they affected the soldiers and their experiences in Vietnam. While the men dealt with the horrors of war, the women were right at their side, just not in as much of a public view as the male soldiers. O’Brien uses women such as Martha, Linda and KathleenRead MoreWomen Roles In The Things They Carried by Tim OBrien Essay927 Words   |  4 PagesIn this book there are three major women Linda, Martha, and Mary Anne. Lindas role is positive yet very saddening because she in a way has given Tim OBrien the power to tell stories so in depth using memories. Mary Annes role is encouraging because she comes to Vietnam and throughout the journey she discovers herself; she redefines the typical role of women. Marthas role in this book could be considered positive because she is keeping up Jimmy Crosss mora le but, at the same time it could beRead MoreFake Love in The Things They Carried by Tim O ´Brian Essay518 Words   |  3 Pagesexample, feels bereft after the war because his hope for happiness in Martha is dashed by her rejection.† (Loneliness and Isolation.) While reading the book The Things They Carried by Tim OBrian, a reader can easily come across many items that represent certain things for the carrier. All these items are symbols for those men and women. For Example, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross â€Å"humps† --a word OBrian used at the beginning of the book to open this point-- his love for a woman named Martha and the dangerRead MoreThe Outlander, By Gil Adamson1619 Words   |  7 PagesMary’s Character in The Outlander, and Gender Roles in the Early 1900s â€Å"Let women be what God intended, a helpmate for man, but with totally different duties and vocations†. In 1870, those words were said by Queen Victoria. By the early 1900s, what she said was still ringing in the ears of the people, even in Canada, which was a considerably young country at this time (History Learning Site). The Outlander, written by Gil Adamson, takes place in Canada during 1903. The story is about a mad youngRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien Essay832 Words   |  4 PagesSummary: â€Å"By and large they carried these things inside, maintaining the masks of composure† (21). In Tim O’brien’s The Things They Carried, the American soldiers of the Vietnam War carry much more than the weight of their equipment, much more than souvenirs or good-luck charms or letters from home. They carried within themselves the intransitive burdens—of fear, of cowardice, of love, of loneliness, of anger, of confusion. Most of all, they carry the truth of what happened to them in the war—aRead MoreThe Things They Carried By Tim O Brien1242 Words   |  5 Pages12) Tim O’s text, The Things they Carried, details his uses of word choice to portray his tone and bias. Tim O’Brien uses Martha to represents the idea of home and all it attendant images. He also uses letters and quotes to convey his image. Despite the fact that women assume a little part in The Things They Carried, it is a critical one. The Female characters Martha, Mary Ann e Bell, and Kathleen Cross all affect the lives of the soldiers . Tim O’Brien uses the female role to portray his view andRead MoreAssess the usefulness of functionalist theories in understanding religion today965 Words   |  4 Pagesthere are four main ways in which religion maintains value consensus. One way is through the sacred and profane, he argued that sacred referred to things that are separate from society and create feelings of awe, wonder and fear whereas profane referred to things that were inferior with no real significance. Durkheim therefore argued that the only thing powerful enough to inspire people in the way religion does is society itself therefore meaning people are not worshipping their religion or god, butRead MoreThe Things They Carried by Tim O ´brien Essay example642 Words   |  3 PagesIn the book â€Å"The Things They Carried† four female characters played an important role in the lives of the men. Whether imaginary or not, they showed the power that women could have over men. Though its unknown if the stories of these women are true or not, they still make an impact on the lives of the soldiers and the main narrator. Martha, even though she is only ever mentioned in the beginning of the book, still plays a huge role in the lives of the soldiers. In some ways, she is a large part