The Things the Soldiers Carried - Essay Example

The Things They Carried The novel by Tim O’Brien generally talks about the events concerning the war that took during the nineteenth century in Vietnam. It shows how young soldiers had to demonstrate their ability to fight despite their emotional affiliations. During this war, the soldiers had to carry various items in order to equip themselves. Assault rifles, letters, pocket knives, wrist watches, radios and pistols among others, were some of the things the soldiers carried during the 19th century Vietnam War. Therefore, the paper will seek to analyze these things that the soldiers carried. Most of the items the soldiers carried depended on Specialty, mission, grunts and necessity in the battle field. According to specialty, the soldiers carried different items depending on their areas of specialization. Lieutenant Jimmy Cross being the leader carried various items such as binoculars, maps and pistols. Additionally, he also carried code books and strobe light because it was his responsibility to ensure his men were safe during the war (Bloom 85-89). Similarly, Rat Kiley who was a medic specialist carried malaria tablets, surgical tapes and morphine that were placed inside canvas satchels. All that was required by medic was carried including M & M’s that were used for treating bad wounds. Mitchell Sanders being a radio officer carried a PRC-radio, 26 pounds battery and a killer. Henry a foot soldier carried ammunition wrapped in belts and an M-60 machine gun. On the other hand, almost every person in the battle field carried photographs. For example, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross had two photographs a woman called Martha (Colella 24). The first photograph was a snapshot while the other one was clipped from the year book of Mount Sebastian. According to necessity, the soldiers carried Military Payment Certificates, pocket knives, cans of water, dog tags, heat tabs, salt tablets, P-38 can openers, sewing kits and rations. These items were averaged between 15-20 pounds in accordance to an individual’s metabolic rate. These items were necessary in the war. For example, they had to take water when thirsty. Jensen who had knowledge in the field of hygiene carried dental floss, soap and a toothbrush. Ted lavender carried tranquilizers because he was always scared. Kiowa who was staunch Baptist always carried an illustrated New Testament that his father gave. As a necessity, all soldiers carried steel helmets including a camouflage cover and a liner. They also carried fatigue trousers and jackets to relieve them from fatigue. Moreover, the land being mined, each person had to carry flak jackets made if nylon and were steel centered. Because an individual could die quickly, everyone carried compress bandages in helmets for the purposes of easy access (Bloom 112). Additionally, everyone carried plastic ponchos because of the cold nights and wet monsoons. The green plastic ponchos were used tents, groundsheets and raincoats. Depending on the mission, the soldiers carried with them various items to equip themselves. They always carried themselves with mosquito nets, canvas tarps and machetes if they had to accomplish missions in the mountains. In instances where the missions were risky, they carried every item they could. For example, in places where mined land had numerous bouncing Betties, the soldiers carried mine detectors. The detectors were carried for safety purposes since it had a sensing plate and headphones. Moreover, in night missions or when ambushed, little odds and ends were carried. During these missions, the soldiers carried various things for various reasons. To comfort him, Henry Dobbins always wrapped his girlfriend’s pantyhose around his neck. Lavender carried starlight scope while Jensen always had carotene rich night sight vitamins. Similarly, Kiowa carried moccasins and his New Testament for silence. All the soldiers carried ghosts as they waited for their ambush coordinates at night (Colella 102). In more complex situations, special equipments were required during the war. For example, when their mission was to search and demolish tunnels in the Than Khe area. In order for the soldiers to accomplish this mission, they carried high penetrative explosives to blow the tunnels. They also carried with them battery powered clackers and wiring detonators with Dave Jensen carrying his earplugs. The tunnels were always searched before being blown by the explosives. A total of seventeen men were in the platoon and the person who was number seventeen would remove his gear and crawl with a flashlight putting his head first and using the caliber pistol owned by Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. The others would act as security during the mission (Colella 112-115). This means they would kneel or sit down and listen to the ground below them. Therefore, the complicated missions required very special equipment and expertise to overcome the enemies. In relation to grunts, the soldiers carried rifles, grenades and guns among others (O’Brien1). The most common grunt that was carried during the mission was the M-16 rifle. This rifle was operated using gas and 8.2 pounds when loaded with twenty round magazine (O’Brien1). The rifle men carried twelve to twenty magazines depending on the psychology and topography. Moreover, the men also carried maintenance gear rods, swabs, oil tubes and steel brushes. Some of the soldiers carried grenade launchers that weighed 5.9 pounds when unloaded. During the time of his death, Lavender had with him 34 rounds, helmet, rations and a flak jacket. After his death, Mitchell Sanders the radio officer used his carried radio to report Lavender’s death and request for a chopper. He was then wrapped in his poncho and the soldiers smoked his dope as they waited for the chopper to come. Additionally, the soldiers carried any weapon that could make the stay alive or kill their enemies. In addition to the standard weapons, they carried AK-47s, M-14s, grease guns and CAR-15s. They also carried plastic explosives, bayonets, shotguns, blackjacks and silencers. Mitchell was equipped with brass knuckles while Kiowa had his grandfather’s hatchet. The other soldiers also carried antipersonnel mines with their firing devices. All soldiers in the battle field had fragmentation grenades and colored smoke grenades. Furthermore, some soldiers had phosphorous and tear gas grenades. Therefore, the soldiers carried all sorts of weapons that they could manage in order to fight the enemies. In conclusion, the things the soldiers carried depended on mission, specialty, necessity and grants. These things helped the soldiers to adequately fight their enemies. For example, the things carried during mission such as the highly penetrative explosives helped the soldiers to blow the tunnels. Therefore, all these things carried helped during the Vietnam War. Works Cited: Bloom, Harold. The Things They Carried. Infobase Publishing, 2009. Print. Colella, Jill. CliffsNotes on O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, 2011. Print. O’Brien, Tim. Indiebound. October 2009. Web. 1 May 2014. Retrieved from http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780618706419 Read More