




Culture can be found everywhere; the things people eat, read, wear, say, etc., are all shaped by one’s culture. Therefore, it is easy and very common for literature to be shaped by culture. A poem, lyrics, and even novels can be inspired by the events and people in one’s society. The culture of the United States after the Vietnam War dramatically and negatively shifted, influencing the writing in the novel, The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien. The aftermath of the Vietnam War and the effects of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder were a part of everyday life following the war, and this is evident through O’Brien’s descriptions of Kiowa, Norman Bowker, and Jimmy Cross and these characters’ thoughts, actions, and manners. By researching the war and effects of PTSD, it is easy to compare how this very real part of American culture in the 1970s influenced the novel.

The first character that is described as the most emotional about the struggles and pains of war is Kiowa. Particularly so because he is the main character of the novel who talks about, well, everything. He is the emotional mold of the Alpha Company, and illustrates his feelings often. For example, after Lavender was shot, Kiowa was sitting at night reflecting on the events of that day. He was the only one who kept bringing up the subject, while everyone else was trying to get him to shut up and go to sleep. “Like cement, Kiowa whispered in the dark. I swear to God- boom, down. Not a word… I heard, man. Cement. So why not shut the fuck up?” (O’Brien 336). This quote is an interaction between Kiowa and Bowker, and not only shows Kiowa’s way of grieving from the war, but also Norman Bowker’s way of grieving as well. Kiowa illustrates someone who wants to talk about their feelings, get it off their chest and lessen the burden of their mind. When Kiowa is told to shut up, he is unable to deal with the stillness of grief. He cannot sleep because his mind plays Lavender’s death repeatedly. Kiowa “wanted to say more, just to lighten up his sleep, but instead he opened his New Testament and arranged it beneath his head as a pillow” (O’Brien 337). In Mark Thompson’s article, “Unlocking the Secrets of PTSD”, some of the symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder include sleeplessness, which Kiowa demonstrates when wanting to do everything but be quiet and deal with the emotions inside his heart and head. In the beginnings of the war, Kiowa was extremely talkative, emotional, and tender-hearted, but as the war rages on, Kiowa’s personality changes and he “shuts up” and borders off his emotions. Even Kiowa’s fellow soldiers noticed this shift in personalities. Norman Bowker yells at him, “No, man, go on. One thing I hate, it’s a silent Indian” (O’Brien 337). In “Lessons from the Vietnam War”, the article explains how Americans in the war experienced a sense of physiological defeat, which is exactly what Kiowa is demonstrating. This shift in personality was an extremely common cause of the war, and many soldiers returned home after battle and exposed this sense of defeat as well. The way the culture shifted after the war was very drastic, and extremely evident in O’Brien’s writing. 

As mentioned earlier, Norman Bowker demonstrated another way of grieving from the war and different symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, as well. Kiowa preferred to let out his emotions, and vocalize what was on his mind. Norman Bowker, however, is someone who doesn’t know how or what to feel and often cannot find words to describe what’s going on in his mind. Bowker’s internal struggle eventually leads to a dramatic shift in his personality as well. This internal battle leads to serious depressive thoughts and extreme survivor guilt after Kiowa’s death. But his past self before Kiowa’s death was just someone who didn’t want to talk about it. When Kiowa brought up painful memories, Bowker was the first one to tell him to “shut up” (O’Brien 336).  Further, Norman Bowker becomes suicidal and cannot fully acclimate back to reality after the experience of Kiowa’s death. The research in the article states that suicide is a major symptom of PTSD and treatment for PTSD is based on the reaction from the events. Norman would not be able to function in society if he were to directly go back to his everyday life from returning to war. When O’Brien was writing the novel, life after war was extremely messy, and people were not able to adjust back into everyday life, either. Especially during that time, PTSD was not actually classified as a real mental issue until after the Vietnam War. Before it was classified as PTSD, it was referred to as “soldier’s heart” during the American Civil War, and during WWI was referred to as “shell shock”. During WWII, it was “battle fatigue” and then “operational exhaustion” during the Korean War. It was then diagnosable as Posttraumatic Stress Disorder only after Vietnam, when it was added to the list of mental disorders by the American Psychiatric Association (Thompson). The Things They Carried illustrates accurate instances of PTSD and the intense mental trauma these troops suffered from the war. 

Another character who emphasized the extreme effects of the war aftermath is Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. Cross is an example of a character with a lack of definite purpose. As leader of the Alpha Company, he should have strong leadership and clear instructions to gain advantage for his troops. However, the toll of the Vietnam War makes this task impossible because the war was messy, undefined, and defeating. “…while Kiowa explained how Lavender died, Lieutenant Cross found himself trembling. He tried not to cry… He felt shame. He hated himself. He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war” (O’Brien 336). He uses his love for Martha as an escape from war, but he cannot be both in love and daydreaming, and in war and on duty. Both his relationship with Martha and his ability to lead a troop of soldiers are fictional. He chooses to love Martha over his duty to lead and ultimately, Lavender dies because of this. Cross illustrates the awful truth of war, and how so often soldiers felt disconnected from why they joined their troop in the first place. Before men left for Vietnam, the country had a strong sense of patriotism and pride for enlisting. But as the Vietnam war raged on without a strong sense of leadership, people lost that purpose, that pride. The overall common theme of lacking purpose was one of the cultural shifts that the American people felt; demonstrating the transformation from a sense of cultural nationalism to a sense of cultural defeat. 

By incorporating the research of the Vietnam War, as well as factual evidence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, it is illustrated that the culture of the United States shaped the writing in The Things They Carried, and that these effects dramatically altered the lives of the people in these cultures as well. By analyzing Kiowa, Norman Bowker, and Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, these characters have been negatively impacted from the war, exemplifying this through their thoughts, actions, and manners. Kiowa transforms from a talkative person with joy, into a closed-off person, hiding his emotions. Norman Bowker is a quiet man who struggles with his traumatic experiences and illustrates difficulty adjusting from it. Lieutenant Jimmy Cross finds himself lacking purpose from the war, and forgetting what passion he had before he enlisted. These characters very easily represent what many soldiers felt post-war, and the struggles they endured coming home.  Through the analysis of the history of the Vietnam War, it is clear to see the negative effects it can have on the people, places, and cultures it involves; ultimately revealing the intense psychological trauma the soldiers endured during the Vietnam War. 







