things they carried

When is Lavender's death first mentioned?

Page 3, right when he is first introduced

When is his death first described?

Page 6, when it was explaining everything all the men carry, his was the more rounds of ammunition because he was scared, it weighed him down as he was killed

What does Lt. Cross think about all the time?

Martha

What were the soldiers doing when Lavender was killed?

Were on a mission to destroy tunnel complexes

How does Kiowa feel about Lavender's death?

Like watching a sandbag or rock fall

What was, "in many respects... the heaviest burden of all"?

The emotional burden, they were young, inexperienced, and scared

What did Cross do with Martha's pictures after Lavender's death?

He burned them because he felt guilty that his attention wasn't on keeping his men safe

How did his feelings for her change[?

Still loved her, but hated her, realized where he was and where she was, needed to let her go and focus on the war

What might Martha stand for or signify?

How does Lt. Cross change his way of commanding after Lavender's death?

Fulfilled his duty without negligence

What could Jimmy Cross never forgive himself for?

Death of Ted Lavender and how he got distracted

How did Jimmy get a new picture of Martha playing volleyball?

Martha gave it to him herself after they saw each other at a college reunion

What does Jimmy ask Tim to do when he writes his story?

Make him out to be a good guy, best platoon leader ever

What does he tell Tim NOT to mention?

he never lets him finish his sentence, don't know

What do we learn about Azar's character in this story?

What did Azar do to Ted Lavender's puppy?

blew it up

How is this story structured? What can you say about all these short sections?

all different small flashbacks or stories about everyone in the platoon

According to Tim, what are stories for?

joining past to future

How did Tim feel about the Vietnam War while he was at college?

He hated it, didn't support it, thought he was too good for it

What was Tim's job in the summer of 1968?

Armor meat packing

What were Tim's options once he received his draft notice?

Run away to Canada and start a new life or stay and fight the war

Who did he hold responsible for his situation?

Who did he think should go to war instead of him?

People who supported the war

What does Tim say is Elroy Berdhal's role in his life?

Hero of his life, saved him

What sort of person was Elroy? How did Tim know?

Where did Elroy take Tim & Elroy on the day six?

the lake where a shore to Canada and the US is visible, giving Tim the choice to stay or run away

What did Tim end up doing about his situation?

He goes to war

Who broke whose nose?

Dave Jensen broke Lee Strunk's nose

What was the effect of the fight on Jensen?

He started to worry and get paranoid and couldn't relax

What did Jensen finally do to resolve the conflict between them?

broke his own nose

What was the pact that Dave Jensen & Lee Strunk made together?

If one was totally messed up, the other would end it for them

What happened to Lee Strunk?

Stepped on a rigged mortar and blew off his right leg at the knee

What were Curt Lemon and Rat Kiley doing when Curt stepped on the land mine?

Playing catch will a smoke grenade

What happened to the VC water buffalo?

Rat Kiley killed it by shooting it a lot

What did Rat do afterwards?

Cried, cradled his rifle, and walked away

What wakes Tim O'Brien up at night 20 years later?

Watching Lemon blow up and have to pick his body parts out of the tree

What does the nice middle-aged woman think Tim should do?

To put it all behind him

What does he want to say to her about the baby buffalo, and everything else in the story?

That she wasn't listening, it wasn't a war story it was a love story, none of it was true

According to O'Brien, what is a true war story NEVER about?

Never about war

How did Curt Lemon's visit to the dentist affect him?

It embarrassed him, made him pull out his own perfectly good tooth

What was Rat's reputation among the men of Alpha Company, when it came to telling stories?

For exaggeration and overstatement

What was the military discipline like at the outpost?

More easy going as a medic, could let his hair grow out, no officers, no polishing boots,etc

Who were the Greenies and what were they like?

Special forces, secretive and suspicious , gone for weeks at a time

Who did Mark Fossie bring to the outpost?

His girlfriend Mary Anne Belle

What was their plan together, since elementary school?

Get married, live in a house by Lake Eerie, have kids and grow old together

What did Mary Anne begin to do when casualties came in?

Wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty, was curious about it all

Where had Mary Anne been the first time she stayed out all night?

With the greenies

How did she change as a result of her conversation with Fossie the next morning?

More reserved, subdued to point of silence

How did she respond to Fossie's arrangements to send her home?

Seemed to accept it at first, but then after a day or two she fell into a restless gloom, sitting by herself at the compound's perimeter

What kind of jewelry was Mary Anne wearing?

Necklace of human tongues

What does Mary Anne tell Fossie about his presence in Vietnam?

He doesn't belong, he doesn't know anything he hides in this fortress

What does Mary Anne say she wants to do with Vietnam?

Eat it, swallow it up and have it inside of her

What is the metaphor that Rat uses to explain Mary Anne's experience with Vietnam?

Vietnam had the effect of a powerful drug, unnamed terror and unnamed pleasure

What did Dobbins do with his pantyhose when his girlfriend dumped him?

He keeps them, saying the magic doesn't go away

What did the monks at the temple help Henry Dobbins do?

Help him disassemble his machine gun and clean it

How does Kiowa feel about the soldiers camping at the temple?

It was bad news, you don't camp in churches

What did the young man hope some day to become?

A math teacher

What is Kiowa doing throughout the story?

Trying to help Tim, telling him it's not his fault it's war, wants him to talk

What is Tim doing?

Silent the whole time, just staring

How did the other boys at school treat "the man"?

Teased him about how pretty and girl-like he was

What does Tim's examination of the boy's body tell us about Tim's feelings about death?

That he feels the weight of death, he just pictured the man's whole life and all that he was taking away from him

What was the boy carrying?

Rice, a fingernail clipper, a few soiled piasters, and a snapshot of a young women in front of a motorcycle

What does Kiowa keep insisting Tim do?

Stop thinking about it and to talk

How does Tim respond?

he doesn't

Why did Tim throw the grenade at the young man?

he saw a young soldier wearing an ammunition belt coming out of the fog

What could Tim have done instead?

not have pulled the key to the grenade and looked more carefully to whom he was throwing it at

What is the significance of the story's final image?

Even now, twenty years later, he still hasn't finished sorting it out. He says that he sees the young man coming through the fog sometimes when he's reading the newspaper or sitting alone. He imagines the young man walking up the trail, passing him, smiling at a secret thought and continuing on his way.

What was the young girl doing when the company came to her village?

dancing through the wreckage

What did Azar do that night?

Azar mocks the girl's dancing by jumping and spinning, putting his hands against his ears and then making an erotic motion with his hips

How did Henry Dobbins respond?

Dobbins grabs Azar from behind, carries him over to the mouth of a well, and threatens to dump him in if he doesn't dance properly.

As the story opens, what is Norman Bowker doing?

After the war, Norman Bowker returns to Iowa. On the Fourth of July, as he drives his father's big Chevrolet around the lake, he realizes that he has nowhere to go.

What happened to Norman's friend Max?

He thinks about his friend Max Arnold, who drowned in the lake.

What happened to his old girlfriend, Sally Kramer?

He reminisces about his high school girlfiend, Sally Kramer, who is now married.

What day of the year does this story take place?

Fourth of July

Which one of his medals was Norman Bowker especially proud of?

Combat infantryman's badge

What medal did he almost win?

Silver Star

What did the town not care to know about?

The medals he won or the war itself

Who did Norman hear screaming?

Kiowa

What did Norman see in the glare of the red flares?

Bowker saw Kiowa sink into the muck and grabbed him by the boot to pull him out.

How did Norman try to save Kiowa?

Kiowa was lost, so Bowker let him go in order to save himself from sinking deeper into the muck.

What made him fail?

What would Norman never be able to do?

Forgive himself

Where is Norman at the very end of the story, and what is he looking at?

Memories of how he could've won that medal and made his father proud

What did Norman do to himself in 1978?

Hung himself at the YMCA

What did he feel had happened to him in Vietnam?

Vietnam robbed him of his will to live

According to O'Brien, what are you doing when you tell stories about your own experience?

The story would have to stand on its own in truth, no matter how much the prospect frightened O'Brien.

How did O'Brien revise the story for The Things They Carried?

A decade later, O'Brien has revised the story and has come to terms with it—he says the central incident, about the night on the Song Tra Bong and the death of Kiowa, has been restored.

Who was "in no way responsible" for Kiowa's death, according to O'Brien?

But he contends that he does not want to imply that Bowker did not have a lapse of courage that was responsible for the death of Kiowa.

What is the platoon doing as the story opens?

The platoon wades in the mud of the sewage field with Jimmy Cross leading the way.

What was Lt. Jimmy Cross determined to do?

He decides to write a letter to Kiowa's father saying what a good soldier Kiowa was

Did Cross know who the young soldier was?

In the distance he notices the shaking body of a young soldier and goes over to speak to him. The soldier too blames himself for being unable to save Kiowa and becomes determined to find the body because Kiowa was carrying the only existing picture of the soldier's ex-girlfriend

What was Cross's opinion of Kiowa?

He feels that his oversight caused Kiowa's death.

What does Cross begin doing in his head?

Meanwhile, Jimmy Cross finishes composing the letter in his head and reflects that he never wanted the responsibility of leadership in the first place—he signed up for Reserve Officers Training Corps without giving thought to the consequences.

How did Lt. Cross feel about being a soldier?

He blames himself for making the wrong decision, concluding that he should have followed his first impulse and removed the men from the field. He feels that his oversight caused Kiowa's death.

What were Kiowa and the boy believe about his role in Kiowa's death?

Blamed himself

What were Kiowa and the boy doing just before the attack started?

Looking at a picture of the boy's girlfriend with a flashlight

What does the boy believe about his role in Kiowa's death?

The flashlight is what caused the enemy to know where they were

What did the boy try to do when he saw Kiowa in the mud?

Crawled towards the scream, tried to pull him out but couldn't

What does Norman say about whose fault it was?

His because he also couldn't pull him out

Where does Lt. Cross imagine himself?

Back at his home