The Things They Carried Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

The Things They Carried - Essay ExampleThe institutionalises that the characters carry manifest themselves even before they baffle in Vietnam. In the story On a Rainy River, the narrator OBrien explains the events that led him to Vietnam in the first place In June of 1968, a month after graduating from Macalester College, I was drafted to fight a war I hated (44). As a pacifist, he did not believe in going to war, so he contemplated running away to Canada. With his opposition to the war, OBrien felt that he could not carry the burden of participating in Vietnam however, these personal burdens were not the only ones that were weighing upon him. He felt that by bonnie a deserter, he would become a burden upon his family They carried the soldiers greatest fear, which was the fear of blushing. manpower killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to. It was what had brought them to the war in the first place, nothing positive, no dreams of glory or honor, clean to avoid the blush of dishonor. They died so as not to die of embarrassment(16). These motivations run contrary to the tralatitious motivations for going to war he at no point considers going to war for patriotic reasons or for dedication to the ideals and causes of his country. Wanting to not disappoint his family, OBrien decides that the burden of going to Vietnam contrary to his political beliefs was slight of a burden than the ramifications of his draft dodging. Vietnam weighed heavily upon OBrien, and he had not even been to the country yet.Among the necessities or near-necessities were P-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wrist watches, dog tags, mosquito repellent, chewing gum, candy, cigarettes, salt tablets, packets of Kool-Aid, lighters, matches, sewing kits, Military compensation Certificates, C rations, and two or three canteens of water. Together, these items weighed