

With the new president of America, its hard to imagine what is going to happen in the United States over the next 4 years. One big fear in American’s minds is our country’s relationships with foreign nations. A plethora of American’s tremble at the thought of getting into another pointless war of mass destruction. What sparked the fear of war in Americans was witnessing the effects the Vietnam War had on our country. Not only did we lose an estimated 64,000 allied soldiers but the physical, emotional, and mental scars on those who survived left some men as good as dead. The story The Things They Carried comes from the author Tim O’Brien, a survivor of the Vietnam War. He describes in vivid detail as he recounts the tragic memories him and his comrades experienced. The Vietnam War took place from (1954-1975) and is still regarded as one of Americas most controversial wars. It made citizens question if our involvement in other country’s affairs was worth drafting thousands of our young men to be trained and thrown into a killing zone. When the war finally finished, and our broken and battered soldiers came home, there was little to no understanding about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  PTSD is a disorder that develops in people who have experienced a shocking, scary, or dangerous event. Many soldiers who returned home from Vietnam suffered from this condition. Understanding the divide the Vietnam War created between Americans combined with the current knowledge of PTSD and its effects gives a better understanding of the story The Things They Carried. 

Tim O’Brien, the author of the novel explains that life in Vietnam is quite hellish and stressful that every member of the company carries something to alleviate the stress of the world. He introduces several members of his company and tells the thing they “carry” during the war however some of things carried are intangible. For example, Lieutenant Cross’ thing carried was a girl he was in love with named Martha who Cross is in love with and cannot stop thinking about, however others have carried tranquilizers, a rifle, chewing gum etc. Each person idolized whatever they carried because as the pressures and anxieties would become more overwhelming, their “item” would transform into their outlet or release. It gets to the point at the company where morale is so low that everyone wants to leave and some soldiers would even “shoot off their finger” so they have an excuse to leave Vietnam far behind. For anyone who has never served anytime in the military, this is not the image of war or its soldiers that are imagined. There tends to be a stereotype of masculinity around war and war veterans. This is not the case in The Things They Carried. The reader sees young boys terrified and miserable everyday of their lives trying to escape their nightmarish reality. These men did not want to be in Vietnam, some of them, including O’Brien actually contemplated fleeing to Canada once he got drafted to avoid serving. This mindset was common as many citizens felt the Vietnam War was a waste of Americas time. Its important to understand the context of Americans perspective on the war to fully understand the misery the soldiers in the story were going through. 

In Economic and Political Weekly magazine’s article called Vietnam War and US: Haunting Legacy was published on the anniversary month of the Vietnam War addressing the legacy of the war and how the controversies around America’s involvement still remain today. The current controversy is around a former Vietnam war squad leader and current democratic senator Bob Kerrey who has been accused of murdering over 20 innocent unarmed Vietnamese civilians during his time in the war (M.S.S). Now nearly 3 decades later, with this claim being brought to light for the first time Kerrey and the rest of his squad are being interviewed and forced to recount the horrors they not only saw in Vietnam, but played a part of over 30 years ago. The article goes on to discuss that the resurfacing of horrific events seems to refuel the fire for those who were and still are protesters of the Vietnam war. It just goes to show that this debate will never seem to go away and the Vietnam War will always be a topic of deep controversy in America’s history.  The article from Economic and Political Weekly was very interesting where it told the story of Bob Kerrey and his squad from the Vietnam War. Allegedly the group murdered 20 innocent Vietnamese men, women and children who were unarmed and then proceeded to lie about it. Now after 32 years of silence the story is slowing starting to be revealed. One interesting connection this article has in common with Tim O’Briens The Things They Carried is the fact that in both readings, veterans of the war have a lot guilt, anxiety and fears still built up inside them decades after the war has past and that it has never been released and both articles show the effects it had on the soldiers. I believe Kerrey’s soldiers kept their mouth shut about what they did in Vietnam because of how controversial of a topic the war already was. The culture of Americans caused fear in the returning in veterans and they did not want to stir up even more controversy or get themselves in any more trouble. This inability to vent or confess what they saw or did the war had traumatic effects of PTSD on the young veterans and many of them struggled to transition into normal life after the war.

The article titled UNDERSTANDING PTSD coauthored by Stephen Xenakis and Matthew J Friedman is dedicated to fixing some misconceptions that the general public has about PTSD. Friedman writes that PTSD is mostly caused by social and political factors. Suicide, homelessness, and unemployment all attest to this claim. To help fight the war against PTSD, seeking to find veterans jobs and raising their quality of life should be the top priority. Friedman says the best form of medicine would be programs for disability compensation and providing benefits for employment. Then in Xenakis’ half of the article, he echoed what Friedman’s main points were but then added how he felt discouraged that are a lot of veterans out there thinking they are struggling a disease that isn't treatable. Many clinics fail to recognize what the real problem is so when they deal with PTSD patients many times their solutions typically don't cure them (Xenakis). The article here supports the claim of how significant culture influences a text. The evidence to prove this is through the articles statement that financial and social issues are the main causes of PTSD (Xenakis). This means its more on politicians and non veterans for not creating a safer plan for veterans once they return home. The unstableness and not being able to find a job is what causes PTSD. Society and culture needs to better prepare and inform themselves on the causes and more importantly the solutions of PTSD so this can be properly treated so retired veterans like Tim O’Brien and his friends do not have to struggle with how to cope with the anxieties and fears the war places on a soldier.

The Vietnam War was one of the most controversial events in American history, the country split in half with those for and against the war. Protests, riots and peace rallies swept the nation throughout this decade. Even the soldiers did not care about winning the war as much as they cared about coming home. The scarring of the war made the PTSD so prevalent in returning soldiers that a lot of them never recovered fully. Even for the soldiers who did not lose their lives, part of them died in Vietnam. The Vietnam War will be one that Americans try to forget, but will always remember.
