symbolism in "the things they carried"
... to protect their heads, big scrambler radios with batteries, and other things. One of them cares about hygiene a lot so this soldier carries a toothbrush, soap, and a Vietnam-English dictionary. Although they have physical support, soldiers also need support. They have been in the field fighting for a long time and that situation makes them concentrate. However, they are still afraid of death. “They were afraid of dying but they were even more afraid to show it” (pg #). Tim O’Brien states that all soldiers are afraid of death but that they are ashamed of showing it. When one of their friends dies, they want to be sad and angry but the only thing they feel is thankful to be alive. Some of them believe that their lucky charms and bibles are protecting them from death. In this fighting, most of them feel that God is a father or mother to them. At the end of the night some soldiers read the bible and maybe they feel like they are talking to God. They don’t have any relatives with them: this means they feel lonely. Some of them assume that the bible is their only friend. Believing in God gives them the mental support to continue fighting. “They carried the land itself as it hardened on their boots. They carried stationery, pencils, and pictures of their loved ones - real and imagined” Being in the field alone, this physical and mental support isn’t always enough for soldiers. Being far away from their family and their loved ones, they need emotional support the most. To maintain this support they carry photographs, letters, and some gifts from their families. For example, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is the leader of the platoon that carries a picture of Martha, a girl who writes to him from the United States. Jimmy knows that there is no real relationship between them, but he uses the picture to help keep him connected to the world he was forced to leave behind. He creates stories in his head about what will happen when he makes it back home, alive. Sometimes he tastes the envelope flaps, thinking her tongue had been there. All these letters symbolize her love for him. The pictures aren’t the only things that provide them with emotional support: they also have other things. The Bible Kiowa carries was given to him by his father. ...