Which Chapter Is It?
This chapter introduces all of the characters and the items the men kept with them during the war.
What is "The Things They Carried"?
The narrator and protagonist
Who is Tim O'Brien?
The Subjection of Truth to Storytelling
What is theme?
"When she was nine, my daughter Kathleen asked if I had ever killed anyone."
What is "Ambush"?
President that wanted to get the U.S. out of Vietnam.
Who is President Kennedy?
Tim is unsure on whether he should go to war or flee.
What is "On the Rainy River"?
This character is distracted by the thoughts of his coveted classmate, Martha.
Who is Jimmy Cross?
Non-judgmental and intimate
What is tone?
"In other cases, you can't even tell a true war story. Sometimes it's just beyond telling."
What is "How to Tell a True War Story"?
The first generation of this weapon was issued during this period.
What is the M-16 Rifle?
This chapter tells the story of Kiowa's death.
What is "Speaking of Courage"?
Carries moccasins in order to be able to walk silently.
Who is Kiowa?
"In some respects, though not many, the waiting was worse than the tunnel itself. Imagination was a killer."
What is metaphor?
"He was a slim, dead, almost dainty young man of about twenty."
What is "The Man I Killed"?
Also fought in the war along with Australia and New Zealand.
What is South Korea?
Rat Kiley writes a letter to his friend's sister after his death.
What is "How to Tell a True War Story"?
Has a whole chapter devoted to him driving around a lake.
Who is Norman Bowker?
Written in the perspective of the character Tim
What is point of view?
"They carried the soldier's greatest fear, which was the fear of blushing."
What is "The Things They Carried"?
A set of documents that contained classified information on the progress and status of the war in Vietnam.
What are The Pentagon Papers?
This chapter features the character, Mary Anne Bell.
What is "Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong"?
Believes that a good war story often lacks a moral.
Who is Mitchell Sanders?
"If they needed fresh bodies, why not draft some back-to-the-stone age hawk"?
What is allusion?
"By telling stories, you objectify your own experience."
What is "Notes"?
President that ended the Vietnamese War, but invaded Cambodia first.
Who is President Nixon?