The Things They Carried: Blog Prompt #3

Blog Prompt #3 (50 points)

Due: Monday, May 16th in class

As you near the end of The Things They Carried, reflection upon the following questions:

1.)   Our guest speaker, Wes Hamilton, spoke about being upset to this day because he does not know/can’t remember the ‘real’ names of service members whom he served with during his time in Vietnam. What does this say about the alter personality that must be created by those at war? Do you think that the soldiers in The Things They Carried know each other the a level that would actually occur at war? Less so? More so? Support your answer with evidence from the text. (1 paragraph)

2.)   We are introduced to an amazing and somewhat unexpected character, Mark Fossie’s girlfriend Mary Anne Bell. While it was, and still is in many ways, considered taboo for women to serve in the military, and in fact it is still technically not permitted for women to serve in combat, although women do. What message, if any, do you think that O’Brien was trying to portray by including such a strong, fearless female soldier in his novel? (1 paragraph)

3.)   O’Brien presents a reality of the Vietnam War and his personal experiences in a way that is neither totally true or totally false. How ‘true’ do you think he is being? How false? What are the advantages and/or disadvantages to presenting a memoir that falls in the middle of fiction and non-fiction? Does it even matter or distract from the story? (2 paragraphs)

Note: A paragraph is 5-7 complete sentences. If you feel so inclined, write a short paragraph and a poem to respond. Also, all of your responses MUST included some type of digital enhancement to support your response. For example, a song like, a YouTube video, a news article….be as creative as you like.

In addition, write at least five potential questions that you want to discuss concerning The Things They Carried.