TTTC

4. Why is the baby water buffalo scene more disturbing than the death of one of O'Brien's platoon members, Curt Lemon?

Because it is more specific and not a generalization. It is very matter of fact. "He stepped back and shot it through the right knee". Whereas Lemon's death is described in a more beautiful way. "...the sunlight came around him and lifted him up"

5. How has Jimmy changed by the end of the story? How will he be a different person from this point on? What has he learned about himself? Or to put it another way, what has he lost and what has he gained?

By the end of the story Jimmy realizes that he needs to move on from Martha. He is going to shut down his day dreams and be a leader again. This will make Jimmy more focused on the war, but since he has no one to keep him moving forward he might lose his sanity.

2. What were Tim's options once he received his draft notice? Who did he hold responsible for his situation? Who did he think should go to war instead of him?

Go, or run off to Canada. He thought supporters of the war should have to go to not just innocent people. He thinks that high political people should have to go and take their wife and kids.

2. What is the point of putting Kiowa's moccasins in the ground (burying them)?

He is letting the memory and burden of Kiowa's death. After 20 years he is ready to let go of the guilt and the trauma.

5. What does it tell us about Tim O'Brien, the narrator, that he reveals character traits of Cross's that Cross would prefer to have remain unknown?

He is more focused on getting out a story then protecting and respecting a friend

2. Where does truth reside in this book? What is the connection between O'Brien's actual experiences and the events in this book? Why is O'Brien using lies to get at "the truth"?

He is using a definition of truth that is not normally used. His definition is based on true stories or he will tell if it is a true story

1. Tim O'Brien's daughter, Kathleen, asks if he ever killed a man: " 'You keep writing these war stories,' she said, 'so I guess you must've killed somebody.' " Following this, O'Brien relates two possible scenarios of the death described in "The Man I Killed" to explain "This is why I keep writing war stories." In your opinion, why does O'Brien keep writing war stories?

He keeps writing them because he needs to tell somebody what happened. He lied to his daughter because she was so young.

3. Why is the young man not identified in the story? What is the character's purpose in the narrative?

He not not identified in the story because he asked not to be and the unnamed man is Tim O'Brien.

1. Why does O'Brien return to the shit field?

He returns to the shit field to find peace within himself so he can move on from the tragedy.

1. How did Rat Kiley get out of active duty in the Vietnam?

He shot himself

4. What does Norman Bowker wish for, more than anything?

His dad to write him a letter, for his father to stop bothering him about earning medals

In this chapter, we learn the 21-year-old O'Brien's theory of courage: "Courage, I seemed to think, comes to us in finite quantities, like an inheritance, and by being frugal and stashing it away and letting it earn interest, we steadily increase our moral capital in preparation for that day when the account must be drawn down. It was a comforting theory." What might the 43-year-old O'Brien's theory of courage be?

His view of courage would be in the view that you get it when you need it most. He said you get in finite quantities meaning you get the little of courage when you need it.

1. What does "The Ghost Soldiers" add to the book that we have almost completed? Does it provide any new insights, perspectives, or experiences about any of the characters? What do you think its function in the overall narrative might be?

It adds to the book the accounts of O'Brien's attitudes towards the other soldiers. O'Brien recalls that he was shot twice. During and after his treatment, O'Brien appreciates Kiley's skill, courage, and ease. When O'Brien returns from his recovery almost a month later, Kiley has been wounded and shipped off and a new medic named Bobby Jorgenson has taken his place. When O'Brien is shot the second time, Jorgenson is incapable of treating his shock, and the result is a painful experience for O'Brien. The realization that he was near death for no good reason leaves O'Brien mad—he vows to exact revenge on Jorgenson. Mitchell Sanders encourages O'Brien to leave Jorgenson alone, saying that he is one of the Alpha Company now and implying that O'Brien is no longer a member of the company. The next morning, O'Brien runs into Jorgenson, who apologizes for his inept treatment of O'Brien, saying that he was scared and that since O'Brien was shot, he has felt a great deal of remorse. O'Brien begins resenting Jorgenson for making him feel guilty. At night, O'Brien and Azar decided to carry out their plan against Jorgenson by setting up flares, and Jorgenson knows it's them. The two jokingly decide to scare Azar. O'Brien speaks in specific terms about getting shot—he leads us through the experience and makes it real for us—the pain of being shot is a survivable pain. O'Brien realizes that the actual pain surrounding a wound is nowhere near as frightening as grappling with the notion of being shot

1. In "Good Form," O'Brien casts doubt on the veracity of the entire novel. Why does he do so? Does it make you more or less interested in the novel? Does it increase or decrease your understanding? What is the difference between "happening-truth" and "story-truth?"

It makes the story harder to understand but happening truth is when you're in what happened and you feel it's your fault when it could not be your fault at all. Story truth is the real truth and what really happened. It makes the story more interesting but more confusing. It makes me want to know what really happened but it makes me wonder which stories were completely true.

5. Look up the definition of the word metamorphosis. In what ways (note that this a plural noun) does this word apply to the transformation of Mary Anne?

Metamorphism is like an all out change. Like something evolved. That's exactly what Mary Anne did, she evolved. A complete change.

2. Why is O'Brien unable to joke around with the other soldiers? Why does the old man remind him of Linda?

O'Brien finds their humor grotesque and disturbing and retreats to his tent. Linda dies of her illness. The old man was Tim's introduction to death in Vietnam. Linda was Tim's introduction to death. The scene with the old man stirred some of the same feelings he experienced with Linda's death, especially fear. Linda functions as the reason Tim writes. To keep memories. Death reappears again and again, in the form of a young Vietnamese man and a fellow soldier.

6. Reread the final two pages of this book. Consider what the young Tim O'Brien learns about storytelling from his experience with Linda. How does this knowledge prepare him not only for the war, but also to become a writer? Within the parameters of this story, how would you characterize Tim O'Brien's understanding of the purpose of fiction? How does fiction relate to life, that is, life in the journalistic or historic sense?

O'Brien's early encounter with death not only prepares him for the Vietnam War, but also for his wiring career. Death is commonplace in war, O'Brien witnessed death much too often when he was in combat overseas. Death and the dead can be too much to handle, it it traumatizing, especially for a young man like O'Brien. When his girlfriend, Martha, died, he discovered a way to keep her alive. At least in his mind. This came to great use in Vietnam when not only his fellow soldiers died, but even the enemies as well. It was a way to cope with a loss and this softened the horrible impact of war on a young O'Brien. The purpose of fiction is to easy the reader in reality. Fictional stories and details can help make a book seem more plausible and "real." In this same way, fiction relates to life in the journalistic sense. It is to make the truth easier to grasp, because sometimes, the truth is hard to swallow, this is when fictional details and stories come to use in making it go down easier.

4. In "In The Field," O'Brien writes, "When a man died, there had to be blame." What does this mandate do to the men of O'Brien's company? Are they justified in thinking themselves at fault? How do they cope with their own feelings of culpability? Consider all of the following characters:

The men were blamming cross for what happened to Kiowa because he should not have posted the troops there. But O'Brien knew better because he knew it wasnt becsause he did not really want to be a commander but in war it seemed that some one had to be blamed even though no one is to be at fault. It also makes it easier to feel better so they know it will not happen to them.

7. Does it matter what happened, in the end, to Mary Anne? Would this be a better story if we knew, precisely, what happened to her after she left camp? Or does this vague ending add to the story? Why?

The vague ending made the story. Mary Anne became a legend of how Vietnam can change a person. This vague ending adds to the mysteries of this war.

3. Like other male characters in this novel, Norman Bowker develops an active fantasy life. Why do these men develop these fantasy roles? What do they get from telling these fantasy stories to themselves? What does this tell you about O'Brien's understanding of the way fiction relates to real life?

They create a fantasy to escape reality, the get happiness and serenity. O'Brien must have really studied these soldiers while writing

2. Why does this story begin with the line: "This is true." How does that prepare you, as a reader, for the story? In what sense is "this" true?

This line is very important for the flow of the story. It is mostly to convince the reader that the story in the chapter is true, but it also prepares the reader for something that is supposed to be stronger, as it is real and it really happened. However, the "truthness" to this story is somewhat relative. The true war story is, according to Tim O'Brien, "never about war. It's about the special way that dawn spreads out on a river when you know you must cross the river and march into the mountains and do things you are afraid to do. It's about love and memory. It's about sorrow. It's about sisters who never write back and people who never listen." And following this reasoning (and the fact that Tim O'Brien states it), the story in this chapter is "a true war story that never happened." This means that the event itself never happened, but the facts on it did.

3. What does Tim say is Elroy Berdhal's role in his life? What sort of person was Elroy? How did Tim know?

Tim says that Elroy saved his life. Elroy Berdahl is an elderly man who owns the lodge on the border with Canada. He knows that O'Brien is there trying to decide whether to evade the draft, but does not push the matter or make the boy talk about the decision. Berdahl never asked O'Brien questions, he just played Scrabble with the boy, gave him odd jobs to do, and ate meals with him. Elroy is patient and non-judgmental. But O'Brien concluded that the old man read the paper, he was "no hick;" he knew that O'Brien was contemplating dodging the draft.

3. What is the purpose of placing this chapter directly after "How to Tell a True War Story"?

To lighten the mood of the readers

3. Why do the soldiers tell jokes about the war, about killing?

To make time pass faster. Also, to stay in good spirits even though bad things are going on around them.

1. According to O'Brien, how do you tell a true war story? What does he mean when he says that true war stories are never about war? In what sense is a "true" war story actually true? That is, in O'Brien's terms, what is the relationship between historical truth and fictional truth?

You tell a true war story by making the stomach believe. A true war story isn't about the elements of the war (napalm, barrages, etc.). It's about the emotions and effects that the war has on the soldier. War stories are fictional truth. Usually the details are embellished to get you to grasp onto the "true" story.

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

she had sent it to him

3. What is the function of the Linda plot in "The Lives of the Dead"? Consider in particular what it teaches him about death, memory, storytelling.

"The Lives of the Dead" finally explains what has formed O'Brien attitude toward death. This attitude is best characterized as horror and disbelief. Instead of turning his disbelief into a religion, O'Brien seeks solace in his dreams. If he can dream Linda,is she really dead? As long as he imagines her, she is not dead. Dreams and sleep are close cousins of death, as poets from Shakespeare on have observed. One goes to sleep not knowing what one will dream or when one willwake up. In the last story in this collection, O'Brien explores the image of transforming one into the other. O'Brien is a storyteller, one who gets to control what happens in this fictional universe. In O'Brien's fictional universe, Linda is still alive. With storytelling he feels he could conquer death itself

2. Consider the placement of this story in the novel. What is O'Brien's purpose in including this story so late in the novel and immediately following "The Ghost Soldiers"?

-The reader might make some presumptions of how he is - He was very judgment -Talking about the childhood version of himself→ he has grown up→ O'Brien's childhood friend Linda was the first dead body he saw

3. The phrase that inspires these two chapters is normally characterized as "friends and enemies." Why does O'Brien (the author) reverse this traditional order when sequencing these chapters?

Because they started off enemies and became friends

6. What did Azar do to Ted Lavender's puppy?

Blew it up

2. What does Dobbins means when he says "Dance right!"?

Dobbins's comment to Azar to "Dance right" is that what Azar was doing with his mocking dance was wrong, and that if he wants to dance he should dance right without making fun of the girl

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

Don't say something we don't know what because he didn't say it and make him handsome/brave and the best platoon leader

3. How did the "old poppa-san" help the platoon? What was his special skill?

He could lead them trough the mine fields with out stepping on a mine and killing everyone

Why is this story called "Speaking of Courage"? Assume the title does NOT hold any irony. In what sense does this story speak of courage?

He doesn't want to speak about the war, but he does talk about how he almost won the silver star. Also to remember those before the war

1. Why did Henry Dobbins continue to carry his girlfriend's stocking even after she broke up with him?

Henry Dobbbins continues to carry his girlfrend's stockings to keep his mind distracted druing the war.

2. How was the war NOT like a game of checkers?

In checkers you can see the enemy, there is a winner and a loser, and there are rules.

1. Who broke whose nose?

Jensen breaks Strunk's nose

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

Jensen broke his own nose

2. In what sense does Jimmy love Martha? Why does he construct this elaborate, mostly fictional, relationship with her: What does he get out of it?

Jimmy is in love with Martha. Being in love with her gives him something to hold on to. It gives him hope to get through the war.

1. What was Kiowa's reaction to setting up camp in a pagoda? Why? How does this differ with Dobbin's

Kiowa didn't think it was a good idea because you shouldn't mess with churches. Dobbins has always been somewhat religious and he may become a monk, but is doubtful because he doesn't like attending church. Kiowa is very religious

2. Characterize Mark Fossie and Mary Anne Bell.

Mark Fossie is young and fairly new, he is not really interested in the war just his girl. Mary Anne Bell is known as the pretty girl who later turns bad.

4. Why do you think she changed? What did the change symbolize? How long did this metamorphosis take?

Mary Anne changed because she almost had to. Mary Anne's change shows how war can change ANYONE. Her change happened within months

1. What could Jimmy Cross never forgive himself for?

Ted Lavender's death

8. "You're in a place where you don't belong." Any parallels to today? How does our lack of understanding of a people and their place destroy us (as it does Fossie)? How does it make monsters of us?

The Vietnam war is a good example, when we shoot and kill other people, we don't know their story. We don't know their life, yet we come to their territory and kill them... That is what makes good people turn to monsters.

3. Explain the significance of the final sentence. Who or what is "all finished"?

The anger and guilt that came with the memory of the war was finished for Tim. He was ready to leave it behind at the shit field and live a better live.

1. What symbolism lies in the woman's dance?

The dance was symbolic of the girl's grief over the loss everyone who lived in her compound.

5. What does Kiowa say when his rain dance doesn't work?

The earth is slow but the buffalo is patient

4. What is the "moral" of the dead KIAs? Consider Mitchell Sanders' view.

The moral of the dead KIA's is that they are kept alive by the stories that are told. True or not; if you feel their presence, they are still here.

1. How does the opening paragraph frame the story we are about to read?

The opening paragraph gives us the sense that everything we have read has been elements of a story that needs to be told in order for "things" to continue to have weight.

5. What, in the end, is the significance of the shit field story (or stories)?

The significance of the shit field story is how Kiowa's death had transformed every single one of the members of the platoon. They had lost a brother and a friend. Kiowa's death also represented all the good things that gets buried in war.

1. What narrative point of view is used in "Speaking of Courage"? What problems does Norman confront when he returns home? What seems to prevent him from dealing with them successfully?

Third person. Everyone from his past is living happily and he keeps thinking about them

1. Briefly summarize the plot and style of the story. Is this story more of a "true" war story than the account in the chapter "Speaking of Courage"?

This is more of a speaking a courage story, more to show you how it felt just be tehre and watch these things happen, and how traumatic these events actually are.

10. According to Tim, what are stories for?

Tim o'brien says that it joins the past to the future

3. What does O'Brien say about storytelling in "Notes"?

To further characterize him

4. Using both chapters "Enemies" and "Friends," explain how war distorts the normal social codes.

War makes people go crazy and some people might even want friends to kill them if they get severely injured

8. Identify in this story moments of beauty and/or serenity.

When Azar gives the boy with the plastic leg his chocolate bar.

5. What is the irony of this chapter's title?

When Jenson and Strunk finally became friends, Strunk ended up dying

9. 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

2. What point of view is used to narrate "In the Field"?

all-knowing third person narrative voice

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

if one became so injured they needed to die the other person would kill them

4. What is the irony of this chapter's title?

that Jensen and Strunk become best friends

2. What was Lee afraid of when he saw Jensen, and what did he make him promise?

the Jensen would kill him. He made Jensen promise not to kill him

5. In many ways, this book is as much about stories, or the necessity of stories, as it is about the Vietnam War. According to O'Brien, what do stories accomplish? Why does he continue to tell stories about the Vietnam War, about Linda?

According to O'brien stories accomplish things that can save us. Help us retreat to our own world were every thing come true.He continue's to talk about the Vietnam War and Linda because he does not want to forget about everything.

1. Characterize Curt Lemon and why he behaves the way he does. How does this affect your reading of the previous chapter

Curt lemon is a big ole brawly strong man, but the dentist scares him.

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

He is completely heartless because he blew up a puppy.

2. Consider the comparison O'Brien makes between Dobbins and America. Does O'Brien like America? Does he respect it?

He likes and respects America

6. Does it matter that Mary Anne is a woman? How so? What does the story tell us about the nature of the Vietnam War?

No it does not matter that Mary Anne is a woman because this shows us that the war can change anyone no matter who they are.

4. Why is Norman unable to relate to anyone at home? More importantly, why doesn't he even try?

No one knows the awful things that happened and congratulate him, which he doesn't like. He talks about how he almost won the Silver Star

3. Find a few of O'Brien's elements of a "true war story." (such as, "A true war story is never moral.") Why does O'Brien believe these elements are important to a "true" war story?

O'Brien believes these are elements because he believes storytellers use the elements in order to get the reader to understand the real truth behind their stories.

2. Why does O'Brien include Norman's letter in the story?

O'Brien include Norman's letter in the story because

2. What is the meaning of the washing motion of the younger monk? Is it the same when Dobbins does it?

They don't know or learn the meaning of the motion, and when Dobbins does it, he does it with respect.

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

the dentist affect him? He fainted and them got mad at himself, so then he went and complained about a monster tooth ache to prove that the dentist doesn't scare him

1. How did the narrator react to the fact that he killed another human being? What evidence in the story leads you to this conclusion?

He feels guilty because he keeps to repeating it, he makes a comparison to his life and the dead mans life, he informs us of many details about the dead mans life.

5. Why does O'Brien relate his experience as a pig declotter? How does this information contribute to the story? Why go into such specific detail?

He first out saying that he hated doing it and he just had to live with it. Then how gory it was, with all the blood everywhere. He said he just left he just wanted to walk away and he also wanted to run away from the war draft

1. How did Tim feel about the Vietnam War while he was at college? Do his actions and language support the idea that he "hated" the Vietnam war?

He was against the war. He wrote articles for the campus newspaper, and went from door to door sometimes. Its not that he hated it, he just didn't support it.

2. What was the effect of the fight on Jensen?

He was going crazy waiting on Strunk to get revenge

3. "The Ghost Soldiers" is one of the only stories of The Things They Carried in which we don't know the ending in advance. Why might O'Brien want this story to be particularly suspenseful?

I think that he does not give us the ending in advance to this chapter because it is suspenseful and it gives effect. He does not want the reader to know how he originally sided with Azar, but in the end wanted to "kill him" and is now friends with Jorgenso

3. The image of the monk cleaning an M-60 is incongruous and jarring. What purpose does it serve in the story?

It adds many more details and a deeper meaning to the story.

4. How do the opening sentences prepare you for the story?: "This is the one story I've never told before. Not to anyone." What effect do they have on the reader?

It makes the reader more involved with the story and want to hear it more since he said that he has never told anyone

3. Describe the changes in Mary Anne Bell from the time she arrived in Vietnam to be with her boyfriend until the end of the chapter. Be specific and record moments from the text (page numbers and descriptions) that demonstrate how she changed.

Mary Anne at first didn't really talk and just played with all the men. She then learns to do surgery on injured people and then she goes out in the village. After, Mary Anne begins to like the adrenaline rush and begins to go out on ambushes with other soldiers.

2. Does your opinion of O'Brien change throughout the course of the novel? How so? How do you feel about his actions in "The Ghost Soldiers"?

My opinion of O'Brien does not really change throughout the course of the novel. Maybe it is because of the fact that I expect the unexpected. Throughout the book, O' Brien has been through a variety of emotional changes. We saw him not supporting the war to having to join the army because he was a coward. We saw him mourn over his fallen peers to him being honest about certain truths. It doesn't really surprise me that he did what he did in "The Ghost Soldiers". He was shot twice and therefore had fear in him. He needed some closure, or needed to face his fear. That was why he played a trick on the medic who didn't really helped ease his pain.

5. O'Brien explains that this story was "not a war story. It was a love story." In what sense is this a "love story"? Why?

O'Brien (narrator) sees the beauty in everything as a way to cope with his feelings. These are not stories about the happenings. "Happeningness is irrelevant (9). They are stories about an immature, young soldier that can't cope with the death of his best friend and a group of men that can't cope with the landscape of Vietnam all the emotions that go with it.

1. Characterize Rat Kiley. After reading the entirety of the story, why does this story seem particularly "true" to Rat? What meaning might he derive from it?

Rat Kiley is very brave. He is used to war and loves to tell stories. It seemed true to him because he was infatuated with Mary Anne and he knows that he will not return home and have a normal life like everyone else.

4. What does he tell Tim NOT to mention?

Ted Lavender's death

7. What does Azar say about his action?

That he's just a boy

1. What is the effect of "Notes," in which O'Brien explains the story behind "Speaking Of Courage"? Does your appreciation of the story change when you learn which parts are "true" and which are the author's invention?

The chapter "Notes" is very important to the understanding of the story. The details and explanations help the reader understand and sympathize with Bowker. Bowker was just a normal guy who did extraordinary things. He was brave when he had to be, and he considered that to be something every soldier should do. The reader learns that even though Bowker has done amazing things, he still considers himself a failure for an event that was not his fault. Notes" gives "Speaking of Courage" much more depth once we find out why it was written. The fact that it was written after Norman died as a sort of memoir and explanation of why he might have done what he did makes it all the more heart-wrenching. To me, notes made the previous chapter even more personal and meaningful. To see what was made up, it made the details that actually matter even more important. The point of that story is not where it was or the junior college or a lake and causeway. Its the effect the war had on the individual and their hometown, and how they felt like they didn't belong anymore. "Norman Bowker's letter hit me hard.

4. How is the idea of weight used and developed in the story? How do you, as a reader, feel reading those lists of weight? What effect does it have on you?

The idea of weight is used as physical weight of the actual items the soldiers carry, and emotional weight from the stresses of war. As a reader this shows me how grueling the war is and if I was in a situation these soldiers are in I do not think I would survive.

4. Explain the significance of the title of this chapter.

The title is not to be taken literally. These are men who seem ghostly with their actions like Charlie Cong, who O'Brien calls the main ghost. "The way he came out at night. How you never... He was scary"(229). I have heard before of these "ghosts" when my grandpa talked about the Korean War. These were the kind of men who you rarely saw because they used the night as a hideout. I am not afraid of the dark. I am afraid of what is in the dark and these soldiers used fears like these to get the upper hand in a situation.

In the list of all the things the soldiers carried, what item was most surprising? Which item did you find most evocative of the war? Which items stay with you?

The weed and the condoms. I was so confused why they would bring those things. Items that stay with me are mainly the weapons.

conception of faith/religion/spirituality?

They don't know or learn the meaning of the motion, and when Dobbins does it, he does it with respect.

2. This story describes fairly intimate aspects of the dead man's life. Where do these details come from? How can Tim O'Brien know them? What is going on here? Tim O'Brien know them? What is going on here?

Tim doesn't actually now what happened to the man, so he is making up the back ground information about him.

6. At the story's close, O'Brien almost jumps ship to Canada, but doesn't: "I did try. It just wasn't possible." What has O'Brien learned about himself, and how does he return home as a changed person?

he tried to go but he realized that he had family and country duties to fulfill.. He would have done it he was just worried about what people would think about him. He was only thinking of himself. That's why he stayed home.