Look at the Happenings in The Things They Carry

The book The Things They Carry by Tim O'Brien documents all trials, tribulations and everything else that soldiers went through in the Vietnam War. Three of the sections in the book concentrate especially on love, enemies and friends.

Story number one that goes under the knife deals with love and is aptly titled the same exact thing. The basis of it is Jimmy Cross visits one of this platoon buddies at home a few years after their tour of duty was over and during the course of living out their glory days, a picture of Ted Lavender surfaces and Martha comes up in the discussion. Next, Martha's tale of rejection comes up which went down at a college reunion. Personally, I think it was a well written passage that brought a sense of some closure to all the baggage that was placed on everybody after Ted Lavender passed away. Martha really didn't understand what Ted was really going through which put these two individuals on different wavelengths. It is a shame that she really wasn't in love because honest emotions were really put on the line on the other side. To end the chapter on a good note for a promise for the platoon to be represented well in a planned novel was a nice way to end the chapter in my opinion.

"Enemies" takes a look at the quarrel between Strunk and Jensen. The whole basis of their skirmish- a stolen jackknife shows that fights sometimes can be over the most juvenile of things. Jensen saw how their rift was starting to take a toll on Strunk. He did the right thing by improving things with Strunk. They may not have been best buddies with each other but they agreed to have each others backs in time of war which is vital. The whole tense situation was best summed up by thinking that the whole fight itself was over a stupid knife.

"Friends" examines the next steps that Jensen and Strunk take in the quest to improve things between them. Tim O'Brien does a nice job in my opinion, to show that even somebody who you get into a fight with can have your back if something bad happens. I am also happy that Jensen was relieved of the weight off of his back that Strunk was not going to suffer after he was struck by the mine and that they were on somewhat decent terms before he was whisked away in the chopper.