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The Things They Carried

The classic, ground-breaking meditation on war and the redemptive power of ...

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Author Biography

Discuss The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien

Repetition is a device O'Brien uses throughout his stories. What do you remember about the man killed by the narrator? How does the repetition of the same language enhance the event or affect your understanding of it?

4

Mar. 15, 2020
by BuffaloGirl

Do you consider the narrator(s) in the book reliable? Do you think anyone's point of view is omitted from the book, and if so, what might we infer from their absence?

8

Mar. 15, 2020
by BuffaloGirl

In the title story, soldiers carry things both tangible and intangible. Which do you think were heavier? Which items spoke most powerfully to you? Did any surprise you? If you had to go to war, what might you take with you?

7

Mar. 15, 2020
by BuffaloGirl

Lieutenant Cross had differing reactions to the men under his command who were killed. What do you think about his reactions to these events?

5

Mar. 16, 2020
by normar

There are many different types of loss addressed throughout the book. What do O'Brien and the other characters in the book lose, in your opinion? What losses do you feel most strongly in your own life, and how do you deal with them?

1

Mar. 17, 2020
by cindyj

Why do you think that O'Brien included a story in which his own character imagines the life and personhood of the man he tells readers he killed?

6

Mar. 22, 2020
by joang

What did you think about Mary Anne's transformation? Do you agree with Rat's assessment?

9

Mar. 22, 2020
by joang

O'Brien writes, "A true war story, if truly told, makes the stomach believe." Which stories in this collection made your stomach believe?

2

Mar. 24, 2020
by AlwaysSunny

Three stories in succession deal with Kiowa's death from different perspectives. Why do you think the author chose to do this?

6

Mar. 26, 2020
by tracyl

What was your experience of the Vietnam War? What other wars have occurred in your lifetime, and how has the experience changed from conflict to conflict, in your view?

20

Mar. 30, 2020
by brendad

O'Brien considers fleeing to Canada to avoid the draft. Was his anger justified? Do you see any parallels with today's society? What would you have done?

9

Apr. 01, 2020
by joang

How do the stories in this collection compare to other "war stories" you have read? Why do you think O'Brien says that the stories he tells are love stories and not war stories?

5

Apr. 03, 2020
by sandrah

Following O'Brien's instructions in "How to Tell a War Story", can we say whether O'Brien's own stories are "true war stories"?

2

Apr. 05, 2020
by normar

What courageous acts did you find in the book, if any? O'Brien says: "I was a coward. I went to war"? Do you agree?

9

Apr. 05, 2020
by normar

Why do you think the author chose to disguise the book as memoir even though it is fiction? What impact does this choice have on you as a reader?

10

Apr. 15, 2020
by Liz K

What tricks do the soldiers use to keep themselves sane? Do you employ any of these – or any other – methods when you're in an unusually stressful situation?

9

Apr. 15, 2020
by Liz K

The things we all carry.

0

Apr. 21, 2020
by raynat

Does there seem to be a clear sense of what is right and what is wrong throughout the book?

8

Apr. 25, 2020
by beckys

What do you believe O'Brien means when he says in "Good Form" that there is "story-truth" and "happening truth"?

6

Apr. 25, 2020
by beckys

According to O'Brien, what responsibilities does—or should—the storyteller bear? Do you agree with him?

5

Apr. 25, 2020
by beckys

In what ways do you feel a soldier's experience of war is different today than it was during the Vietnam era?

10

Apr. 26, 2020
by lauriec

Overall, what do you think of The Things They Carried? (no plot spoilers in this thread please)

18

Apr. 28, 2020
by rebeccar

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