Better than Your Average War Story: “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien

By Cristen Yakush ‘13
EE Staff Writer

Timothy O’Brien grew up in a small Minnesota town, the epitome of living a sheltered life. He diverged from this isolated lifestyle when he attended Macalester College, where he centered his attention on studying political science. However, in the midst of gaining his education, Timothy O’Brien became caught up in the Vietnam War. O’Brien would attend peace vigils and war protests. Despite his attempts to detach himself from the war, he soon enough found himself standing on the battlefield.

O’Brien’s future plans for Harvard University were put on hold when the 22-year-old received the ever-so-dreaded draft letter in the mail. Initially heading towards Canada to avoid the draft, Timothy’s attempt to dodge war seemed like the best choice. Ideal but morally wrong, O’Brien decided against fleeing and began training in August of 1968, followed by his deployment to Vietnam in February of 1969.

While there, O’Brien wrote stories, narrating and reflecting on his experiences of being at war. Chronologically following his journey, his stories include characters based on his real-life war friends and loved ones.

“Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to. It was what had brought them to the war in the first place, nothing positive, no dreams of glory or honor, just to avoid the blush of dishonor. They died so as not to die of embarrassment.” This quote from the book is one of the most notable and indicates the harsh actuality of being a soldier.

The Things They Carried denotes both heart wrenching and witty experiences, along with the feelings associated in the time of war. Throughout each short story, the inescapable burden of fear is present. These stories contain both fiction and non-fiction and touch on different men’s accounts of personal feelings and grief. In attempt to come to terms with the past, this book is an incredible portrayal of the Vietnam War experience.

Being a first-hand experience, this book is said to be, “One of the finest volumes of fiction about the Vietnam War”. This book is a must read to gain insight on the expeditions and realities of being a soldier.

The Washington Review said, “To say it was successful would be an understatement.” As a reader, I’ve never felt as intrigued and compelled to continue reading as I did while reading Tim O’Brien’s account. Although war is not typically a topic of interest for me, this book demonstrated something more than just the typical war recount. The Things They Carried is a book worth reading.