THE THINGS THEY CARRIED is Tim O'Brien's beautiful, anguished collection of linked stories about
“…..[This book] is not a collection of short stories, but it is not one story with a beginning and an ending. It is perhaps closest to listening to a soldier storyteller over a long period of time.”
THE VIETNAM WAR is an integral part of
It was the longest war in American history and the most unpopular American war of the twentieth century. It resulted in nearly 60,000 American deaths and an estimated 2 million Vietnamese deaths. Even today, many Americans still ask whether the American effort in Vietnam was a sin, a blunder, a necessary war, or a noble cause, or an idealistic, if failed, effort to protect the South Vietnamese from totalitarian government.
Many prize-winning photographs are among the most searing and painful images of the Vietnam War era. These images helped define the meaning of the war. They also illustrate the immense power of photography to reveal war's brutality.
ASSIGNMENT: Click on O’Brien’s novel to navigate the Vietnam War in pictures. In a bog post, describe and reflect on one photograph, describing the emotions and insight evoked from it.
200 words.
The picture I chose was a picture where a man is helping to aid his wounded friend. In the picture there is one man hurt and the other men in his group are helping to try and help the injured man. I chose this picture because I think it did a good job of showing the importance of the saying “no men left behind”. The other member of the group could have left the hurt man there to die, to insure their own safety and make sure they could get out of that place on their own. I think that the photograph also shows how while the men are together everyday, they become close and form a family with each other. This is also shown in the novel The Things They Carried, in the novel all the men are like brothers to each other, and in a way they care about their safety as much as they care about their own. In the novel it is shown how much they care when Ted Lavender was killed and Lieutenant Jimmy Cross felt like it was his fault, he was not giving all his attention to the safety of his men. "One thing for sure, he said. The lieutenant’s in some deep hurt. I mean that crying jag-the way he was carrying on –it wasn’t fake or anything, it was real heavy-duty hurt. Say what you want but the man cares.”
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose was a picture of a United States soldier sitting in a personnel carrier. He has the word “hippie” written on his helmet, and is carrying a pink umbrella. I liked this picture because the soldiers would write their feelings on their helmets, and even though the man is a soldier, he is expressing that he is anti-war. I like this picture because it shows that the soldiers aren’t bad or want to kill others; they want peace just as much as everyone else. The emotion this picture evokes is hope. I think that the picture shows that people as good and don’t always want war to happen. The picture could make someone feel hopeful for peace one day
ReplyDeleteThe photo that I chose has four soldiers in it. Two men are lying down injured. One may be dead and the other one is being treated by another soldier that looks like a medic. Another man behind those two looks to be just fixed up and has a face bandage on covering his eyes and only exposing his nose and mouth. This Gory scene reflects much sadness but it shows that no man is left behind. It shows how every soldier is cared for no matter what. And has some American pride to being out there and keep moving forward no matter what injuries occurred. Also besides those four men that i decribed up close, there are three men farther behind them seeming to be marching down a path. Marching to keep moving foward and carry on. I feel like this photo creates a sense of hatred against the vietnamise people for doing this to our fellow Americans.
ReplyDeleteI chose the black and white picture of an American soldier, and the only colored element in the photo was the peace sign around the soldier’s neck. One of the main reasons there were so many hippies during the Vietnam War was because most Americans did not want to be involved in the war at all. So many soldiers sacrificed and endangered themselves for their country, even though most people believed it to be a pointless war that shouldn’t be fought to begin with. People started to become “hippie” because all they wanted was peace. They wanted their family and friends to come back from war and they didn’t want to get drafted themselves. I thought this photo was powerful because the peace sign in the picture was colored when everything else was black and white. I found this interesting because I think it symbolizes that it was a distressing time. The war was such a dark time and it changed so many people’s lives. The only thing some people had to believe in was the movement for peace throughout the world and to eliminate unnecessary fighting. Although this soldier clearly was longing to spread the peace, he still fought for his country, like so many other men in this war. I found it to be influential how many people wanted peace instead of war.
ReplyDeleteThe photo that I chose is of a US helicopter saving other US soldiers that are wounded. This picture was taken at a relive camp that was ambushed by the Vietcong. There are a couple of different emotions that are portrayed in this photo. One is desperation because these soldiers were just attack and wounded and they needed the help of the helicopter to save them. The color of this picture also shows that its desperation with the dark and dull colors. Another emotion is relief because the helicopter came and was trying to save them. Anger also because if the US was just ambushed then they must be angry at the Vietcong for doing that to them and for "Fighting Dirty". This picture is a powerful picture because is shows how bad the war really was. Many people died and going into the war not a lot of soldiers knew what they were up against. This SHows what Tim Obrien was trying to convey in the book The Things They Carry. that particular war was one of the brutal and harsh war that the US every fought. I chose this photo to show people how it really was not how people thought that it would be like.
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose is located on a battlefield. There are many guns stuck into the ground with helmets and a pair of boot sitting next to the guns. The Picture is describing a memorial of all the people who died between September 11th and November 25th, 1967 in the Vietnam War. The picture explains how many people died during the Vietnam War. For the United States about 58,000 men died. The picture makes people very emotional. They become upset seeing how many people died. This shows symbolism because it shows how for every gun hat and pair of boot a certain amount of people died. This relates to the book because when someone in the platoon does some of them because emotional. For example when Ted Lavender died Jimmy Cross was very upset because he felt like it was his fault. “He felt shame. He hated himself. He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war.”(page 16) this relates to the picture because Jimmy Cross got upset over the deaths in the platoon like people get upset over seeing the picture.
ReplyDeleteThe Photograph I chose is a Vietnams boy fighting on the streets. This boy appears to be about eight years old and in the picture you can see he has guns, ammunition, a knife and a grenade. This picture struck me right when I saw it. It is hard to believe that kids years younger then me would be combating in a war and killing. I’m sure this is not the only boy who was fighting. I cannot envision a US soldier killing a boy no older then eight it does not seem feasible. This picture makes me feel like the war that we fought in Vietnam was not a success at any stage, it was only a failure. To fight in a war where you are fighting against little boys is not tolerable. If I were alive back in that time I would have been totally in opposition to the Vietnam War.
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose was soldiers standing in the middle of a destroyed field preparing to be evacuated by a helicopter. This picture takes place in Shau Valley.One of the men is injured and needs an airlift out to get medical attention. The other men around him are trying to help him before the helicopter comes, but they see it coming now. There is a destroyed helicopter right in front of them and so many trees down. It's hard to see through the mess, they just want to get out of there as soon as they can. The soldiers put a smoke flare so the helicopter could see them and get them. A few of the men took off their shirts to wrap their friends’ injury. I chose this picture because it's very powerful and describes the Vietnam War well through its destruction and hard times the soldiers had to go through. I also liked this picture because of how I could see the emotion of the soldiers on their faces. There was nothing positive about this war and this picture could represent it. There are many soilders fleeing and trying to get a helicopter out of that area, but the injured get to leave first.
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose was an image a mother and her two children crying, and an American soldier trying to help. They are sitting outside a field and are crying because they are terrified of the war going on. I chose this picture because I think it shows a good example of how the people who lived in Vietnam felt about the war and how it was very scary for them too. When look at this picture I feel sadness, because it’s sad to think how the families who live in Vietnam can deal with explosions and death everyday. I also felt hope because it’s good to know that good people like that soldier is willing to help.
ReplyDeleteI found a photo that contains three men. Two are in the crouched position, while the other is standing in the back. The first man is in focus and the other two are increasingly blurred. the front man's eyebrows are down, eyes are almost slits, his nostrils flared, and eyes intently looking into the distance. A serious look on his face with rifle in hand and cigarettes peaking out of his breast pocket. On point, waiting for the medical assistance to arrive for his wounded friend. This picture make me feel how one minute everything could could be fine and then the next your whole demeanor changes.
ReplyDeleteThe photo that I chose is of a village being attacked, while children run though the streets, covering their ears, and having to witness the bodies that are lying on the street. This photo is significant to me because you see the devastation occurring and you see the children experiencing something so horrible that no one should ever have to experience… let alone children. This picture represents that actual actions and events that were talking place during this time. When I think of war I normally think about guns, armies, explosions and the deaths of our people and the deaths of the terrorists. Then again, a person doesn’t necessarily think about the lives of all of those innocent women, children, elders, and the people who don’t agree what with their leaders’ decisions. Those people, the innocent by standers, are dying each and everyday and this picture shows EXACTLY what those innocent people experience.
ReplyDeleteThe image I had selected, is showing an evacuation helicopter coming and rescuing a U.S. 1st Cavalryman from when he had gotten shot during battle. This image reflects back to the novel The Things They Carried because during that time many people had wound up getting shot or hurt and needing to be evacuated from that area immediately, because they were seeking medical help. When I had seen this image it had made me feel bad for all of the people and there families who were in the war and had children that were either hurt or have passed away. Another feeling that I experience is guilt, because I feel that there’s nothing I can do to help, and I’m sort of taking advantage of my freedom
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose was a picture of a United States soldier standing over the body of a charred vietcong soldier in the remains and rubble of the streets in Hue, South vietnam, February 17, 1968. I chose this picture because it shows the brutality of the war and the destruction cause by all of the fighting and weapons. The soldier in the picture has his gun drawn and shows that he is waiting for confrontation and for the communist forces to attack. The body in the street of a burned dead vietcong shows how brutal they were and how they just killed the enemies and fought in the streets of a village where innocent civillians live and may have been caught in the crossfire. The amount of rubble and destroyed bulidings shows the damage caused by the gunfire and soldiers fighting and the war. This can be realted to The Things They Carried from when they stated that they had gone into villages and had set fire to them and destoryed some of the buildings and houses and saw the destruciton cause by the war and the injured people.
ReplyDeleteI chose this picture because the setting looked interesting. The picture i chose shows a group of American soldiers who just landed near Duc Co, Vietnam in 1965. One of the soldiers is sitting on the hood of the car and he looks very stressed. All the men look a bit stressed. You can barely see the helicopter in the backround because of the dust and sand blowing around. The soldiers dont like the red-looking sand because it left a red color everywhere. They called it a 'numbha ten' because because in the army at that time that was slang for anything bad. In the war it was common for American soldiers to define there own terminology. For example they called new soldiers FNG's(Fuc*ing New Guy). The red sand in the picture blowing around is just one of the many things that soldiers had to struggle with in Vietnam.
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose is a picture of a large helicopter. It is carrying ammo for the First Calavry Division arimobile troops in An Khe, South Vietnam on April 11th,1966. This picture is during sunset and the helicopter, CH-47A Chinook, looks like a shadow in the sky. This is after a long and hard day in the Vietnam forests, and the helicopter looks like it is retiring after a hard day. This helicopter is from the Army's 228 Aviation Battalion. Itdoesnt look too fun in the Vietnam War. If the men in The Things They Carried had a helicopter, they could fit a lot of things in it that they wouldn't have room for without it.
ReplyDeleteThe photograph I chose was a very heartbreaking image, it was of a soldier in the Vietnam War with a tear in his eye. When I first saw it, I knew it was going to be the one for this writing assignment. It was very moving and touched my heart in an immense way. This really made me realize how tough it was for all the soldiers during that time. I never had taken a moment out to actually think about how hard it must have been for the soldiers each and every day. If I was to put myself in their shoes, I know I would not have lasted long! I would live in such fear and paranoia about what is going to happen to me next. I would also know that the next time I returned home, I would be a whole different person. All those soldiers have gone through so much; and the experiences they have gone through they can never take back. Most of the things they have seen, people here in America would never even think of. War is a great challenge and every soldier that has been involved, I look up to, they are so brave.
ReplyDeleteI chose the picture of the monk burning himself to death. This picture was appealing to me because I remember in eighth grade learning about the Vietnam War and we also learned about the monks burning themselves to death to try and promote peace. From what I am seeing in this picture this kind of thing happened a lot because the other people in the picture are not really making a big deal. During this time period seven monks burned themselves to death because of anti Buddhist policies. This picture was taken on October 5th, 1963. Everybody in the background has either stopped to watch or is still going on with their daily routines as you can there is man looking for his lighter and really not even paying attention to what is happening. This photo explains what is going on during the time of then war not only are Vietnamese resisting the war not just the United States. The government never took responsibility for the war they blamed it on the Vietcong.
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose is the picture showing civilians lying dead and a South Vietnamese soldier still sits in his jeep after being shot in the head by a team of hit-and-run Vietcong in 1968. Vietnamese children are running past and looking at the charred and dismembered bodies. This pictures shows that how the Vietcong had no care for human life other than themselves. It shows what innocent civilians lived through in Vietnam back during the Vietnam War. It shows the horror of war in not just Vietnam but during all wars of past times. Innocent civilians run scared of the war and the soldiers no matter who the soldier is whether its an American, Vietnamese, or Vietcong.
ReplyDeleteI chose to write about the picture of the Vietnamese children that are fleeing from their village of Trang Bang on June 8th, 1972. What has happened is that a South Vietnamese air force plane has dropped an unplanned napalm bomb on the village. The emotions shown in this picture are extreme. The little kids are running for their lives hoping that they will not die. This picture drew my attention because this situation could have happened to anybody. This picture shows how wild the Vietnam War really was and the type of struggles people went through during the years of the war. This picture is sad to me because you see how the children are reacting to something that they would never have imagined in all their lives. The little girl in the picture shown went on to be a Good Will ambassador. This shows how she overcame the war to go on to bigger and better things in her life. The setting in the picture really shows the emotions that the people in the village must have been going through. The smoke in the picture shows the village and the craziness during the war. I thought the photo was powerful because it was very realistic and unrealistic at the same time.
ReplyDeleteThe picture I chose is of a Marine standing next to the remains of a Vietnam Cong Soldier,Hue, South Vietnam, February 17, 1968. The Marine is standing in a room that looks like it was destroyed by bombs. This photo was very moving to me because it showed all the innocent lives that were lost and all the homes that were destroyed during the Vietnam War. It was estimated that nearly that 2.5 million people were killed during the war on both sides. Thousands of people from the United States, men and women, were drafted and sent off to war. Not only is it sad to see the lives of people lost from your own country but it is also moving to see the other lives that were lost in the country also. This picture makes me feel sad because I could only imagine myself or a loved one of mine being in the Vietnam War or any other war I did not believe in or was fighting against people I did not want to fight. I know if I was in one of those soldiers shoes and came back home alive I would be a changed person. I do not how I would be able to deal with having to go through so much and still be alive, I don't know what I would even do. Nobody today realizes how many lives were sacrificed and what people had to give up for our country. Looking at this picture was a very upsetting thing to see. I look up to anyone that was in the Vietnam War that died or lived and to other lives that were lost in wars after.
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