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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 3 page essay that analyzes the theme of reality versus fantasy in Tim O'Brien's novel The Things They Carried, which presents the experience of soldiers fighting in Vietnam in a realistic manner. A realistic war story is nothing new. Many writers have related the carnage and horror of war, but they do so in a standard linear fashion, which has the effect of relating the irrationality of war in a rational fashion. O'Brien's writing, rather than presenting his war stories in a rational, chronological fashion, blurs the lines between reality and fantasy. In doing so, he presents a truer picture of combat experience because this recreates the psychic landscape of the traumatized combat soldier. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khtorv.f.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
writers have related the carnage and horror of war, but they do so in a standard linear fashion, which has the effect of relating the irrationality of war in a
rational fashion. OBriens writing, rather than presenting his war stories in a rational, chronological fashion, blurs the lines between reality and fantasy. In doing so, he presents a truer picture
of combat experience because this recreates the psychic landscape of the traumatized combat soldier. From the beginning of the novel, OBrien is forthright about blurring the lines between what
is "real" and what is fictional by naming his protagonist "OBrien," yet insisting that this is a work of fiction. His alter-ego protagonist makes it clear that he is not
concerned about relating precisely what happened, as he argues that a "true war story does no depend upon that kind of truth" (89). According to OBrien, a "true" war story
makes the "stomach believe" (84). As this suggests, some of the graphic descriptions of war injuries are sufficiently gruesome to make the reader feel ill. These memories are obviously painful
and when they crop up, OBrien (the character) pushes them aside. The reader can tell that he truly does not want to think about such things, yet memories continue to
crop up in bits and pieces, in a haphazard fashion. He will start stories and then abandon them before reaching a conclusion, only to take up the same story
several pages or chapters later. Sometimes the protagonist will start a story and another character will interrupt and finish it. Some narratives are presented as absolute truth and then immediately
refuted by someone else. OBrien offers six different versions of Kurt Lemmons death. Each of these different versions is disturbing, but, as the protagonist puts it, "in the end,
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