The Vietnam War is recognized in United States history as an extremely traumatic conflict with few to no advantages. Having ended over 40 years ago, this war has left its veterans with many experiences to share with the American public as well as many health issues, both mental and physical, to verify their horrific stories. Many societal trends in the U.S. were started by this international conflict, including a new way for mental illnesses to be viewed. Men would return from war having been changed by there scarring experiences. Many exhibited this change in several different ways, whether they lost limbs, friends, or their own sanity. According to Science News,  “Veterans of combat in Vietnam has been described as being prone to a particular set of symptoms: alienation, the feeling of having been scapegoated, disturbances in close, interpersonal relationships, Perceived capacity of violence, emotional anesthesia, or numbing, to war experiences and identity confusions” (“What ‘Post-Vietnam’ Syndrome?”). Many novels, films and shows have documented the tales that these men bring back home. These references similarly show first hand footage of the conditions in the war torn country, including pieces such as Tim O’Brien’s, The Things They Carried. The Things They Carried explains the formation of many mental illnesses, as well as illustrates the change that these men experienced as they journeyed through Vietnam in the name of freedom, by showing the events that pushed them passed their limits. 

Tim O’Brien tells the tale of a single group of United States soldiers and their tour through the countryside of Vietnam in search of enemy soldiers. Being led by First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the group of men are described primarily by the objects and tools that they carry on their person, ranging from militarily issued equipment, to sentimental items from home (328). O’Brien’s descriptions of these men are very revealing of the way that he wants his readers to view the condition of these men, especially when it comes to this First Lieutenant. The initial descriptions of this character tells us that he “carried letters from a girl named Martha, A junior at Mount Sebastian College in New Jersey…Too carry something was to hump it, as when Lieutenant Jimmy Cross humped his love for Martha up the hills and through the swamps” (329). Here the reader is being told about the emotional connection that “Lieutenant Jimmy Cross” has as he begins his journey with the girl he was in love with back home. He has quite a fixation with this girl, as he is shown carrying Martha memorabilia as he goes out to kill communists; however, what this truly shows to the reader is how he still has the capacity to express a longing for hope and detachment from his terrible surroundings. He has yet to feel the full effects of the war yet. He remains thinking over and over about Martha, and less and less on the bloodshed around him. He would “return to his hole and watch the night and wonder if Martha was a virgin” opposed to continue strategizing for the next day (328). However, a turn of events causes Cross’ mind to change when he begins to blame the brutal death of one of his men on his own failure to stay focused. The author writes, “ He felt shame, He hated himself. He loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war” (336). The war is shown to have a clear effect on Jimmy Cross’ emotions and values as he begins to express a feeling of disdain for the women he once felt nothing but love and admiration for. Having watched a friend of his suddenly lose his life, his love has forcefully been ripped from his mind and his hope and happiness have gone with it. At this point in the memoir, Cross now hates himself, which is an attribute that is is tied to depression. Cross feels as if he must journey into a new, hardened, survival mode if he wants to be able to keep himself and the rest of his team alive. According to Brian Handwerk of  The Smithsonian, “More than one-third of the veterans with current war-zone PTSD also suffer from major depression,” which shows O’Brien’s high accuracy on the effects from war on the soldiers that are in combat (Handwerk). This dramatic shift in the lieutenants mental state is only a single example of how the Vietnam war manifested in each and everyone of its participants and only makes the writing of The Things They Carried much more insightful.

 Not only are the emotional transitions that combat soldiers experience well illustrated by The Things They Carried but the mental toll that the relentless violence has on them is as well. Sleeping in middle of a war torn country and fighting on the frontlines brings upon huge amounts of gruesome sights. Similar to how they changed Jimmy Cross’ love for Martha, these brutal acts of violence are shown to affect his men in a major way. Being forced to kill or be killed, day in and day out, is traumatic enough to most definitely show some sort of addiction to violence. Tim O’Brien tells his readers about Norman Bowker who was a “very gentle person” and how this man “carried a thumb that… had been cut from a VC corpse, a boy fifteen or sixteen” (334). A once “gentle” and kind man has now reached the point that he feels that carrying the severed thumb of a dead teenager is rational. The crazy behavior of these soldiers is concerning and questionable, as they begin to show characteristics of serial killers. This skewed view of violence can be seen in many veterans, especially those on the front lines, and it is all caused by the same experiences. According to the Smithsonian, “the results show that of the six symptoms attributed to many Vietnam veterans, just one was confirmed: perceived capacity for violence” (Handwerk). Vietnam soldiers return from the war having been desensitized to acts of violence that average society would see as obscene behaviors. Just like many other soldiers, Bowker’s own capacity for violence is clearly within the boundaries of what a doctor would still be able label a “symptom” of the combat in war. However, he is spoken to by his fellow soldiers as just a normal soldier. The context of the story tells a lot about the mindset of the soldiers that are mentioned, such as their adjustment to death and gore; similarly, this article from Smithsonian explains that Vietnam veterans are statistically more adjusted to brutality (Handwerk). The transition that this war brings onto people could be said to vary case to case, however, a large portion of living veterans still exhibit these signs, including violence and depression. O’Brien’s character Norman Bowker is a prime example of one of these afflicted soldiers and is a helpful tool to capture the authors knowledge of the war and the message he is trying to communicate about it.

War has be raging between kingdoms, countries, tribes, villages, and religions since the beginning of the human race however, it was not until the conflict in Vietnam that the mental illness’s that result from them began to be recorded and treated. Tim O’Brien was able to take this information and compile it into the novel The Things They Carried and accurately illustrate the plights that they faced while serving the great nation of America. Depression and an increased capacity for violence are only two of the symptoms effecting O’Brien’s soldiers, however they are very clearly some of the most noticeable changes. the transitions and changes that they all experienced individually and as a group, each contribute to these as well as many other symptoms. Many ex-soldiers continue to face symptoms of war on a day to day basic, unable to find adequate help. Illness’s such as these, have only recently started to be more and more efficiently assessed , even as soldiers remain as such a valuable part of our nation. Tim O’Brien’s portrayal of theses issues not only enrich is story but help to bring attention to an on going issue in the United States. 
