Argument- Tim O'brien uses close detail as well as explanatory descriptions to express the psychological tension that the war places upon a soldier. Evidence: Throughout the article the author focuses on the psycholgical views of both characters. "The novels are intimatly personal, psycholical and explanatory." The article than continues to prove that TIm O'Brien uses different perspectives of the war through his various characters, primarily Cacciato and Paul Berlin. This is useful because it gives the reader a broader view on the war, and a soldiers reactions and responses to the war. Thoughts: I believe that Tim Obrien purposefully used the technique of juxtaposition to express the optimisitc and protagonist view of the vietnam war through a soldiers eyes. O'Brien himslef was a soldier, which makes the reader ask, "Is TIm Obrien a protagonist, or a optimist?" I believe he is more so categorized as a protagonist. I came to this conclusion because in both books, "Going After Cacciato, and "The THings They Carried" the protagonist view is expressed more clearly. Psychological trauma is evident amonst the American soldiers in Vietnam. O'Brien uses both repition, close attention to detail and juxtaposition to prove this as fact.

Argument: The argument is that TIm O'Brien, the author of "The Things They Carried", Creates a both fictional and non-fictional story which creates confusion in interpreting the books stories. Stories are jumbled up and not told in sequence or by the same people, or even interupted because of the stroytellers death. Because of this the reader may struggle with having a clear understanidng of the novel. Evidence:"'Patrol went up the mountain. One man came back. He died before he could tell us what happened,'"(6) -- many are in their own way as enigmatic. The tales included in O'Brien's twenty-two chapters range from several lines to many pages and demonstrate well the impossibility of knowing the reality of the war in absolute terms." "Tim Obrien terms TheThings They Carried "'fiction. . . a novel. . . (Mehren El), but in an interview with Martin Naparsteck, he refers to the work as a "sort of half novel, half group of stories. It's part nonfiction, too," he insists" Thoughts: I agree with the argument of this essay. I often become confused or lost within the stories of Tim O;Briens "The Things They Carried" because the stories are so damn unorganized! One story may begin than abruptly end, only to be finished by another soldier farther along in the novel. I will admit it is a challenge to understand, but I do enjoy this novel, and must admit the stories are interesting......well, when understood at least.