Tim O’Brian and Thomas C. Foster are both fantastic authors. They both have written fantastic titles, The Thing They Carried ( By Tim) and How To Read Literature Like A Professor (by Thomas).
Even though they were published in different years and different parts of the world, they still are very similar. One is about war and the other one on literature, but when examined you can clearly see religious influences in their writing. Oddly enough, they are influenced by many of the same ideas.
In the Things They Carried there are many references to the Bible, I enjoyed Tim O’Brian’s comparison of Jimmy Cross and Martha to Adam and Eve. In the book, Jimmy had the potential to be a great leader had it not been for his obsession with Martha, the distraction that she provided was too great and it led Jimmy to fail his men. He committed the forbidden act of letting one of his men die. In the book it even goes as far as to call Vietnam the “Garden of Evil. ” After his run with fafilure he reaches deep within himself and becomes the best leader he can be.
Then taking the blame for losing his men, taking that burden from the others. Eating is communion, plain and simple as that. No matter how small the gathering may be,it always has an air of trusting and friendship to it. In the Things They Carried there were many acts of communion, when the men smoked Lavender’s dope, when they received Christmas cookies, and several others are all good examples. It means much more than simply eating the meal, the air of the meal writes volumes on the relationship of characters. Telling much more than simply stating that characters are friends or enemies.
The Term Paper on The Things They Carried – Tim O’Brien
... weight can come in. In his short story “The Things They Carried” Tim O’Brien describes of life, in the Vietnam War. In nineteen ... pounds. Tim O’Brien describes most every thing down to pounds and ounces. This symbolizes the physical restraints’ put on men of war. Tim ... O’Brien even put weight in to describing letters and photos that Lieutenant Jimmy Cross had that ...
Every trip is a quest, it may seem like a insignificant trip, but it’s extremely likely a quest for knowledge or a certain experience to be given to the character after complementing the quest. In the Things They Carried, Tim has his own quest, he receives a draft notice and does all that he can to avoid it. As he’s driving further north he feels guilty as he imagines the reactions that his family will have, and eventually he stops at a small hunting lodge. There he meets Elroy, he seems omniscient, as he seems to know just what Tim needs without, him saying it.
Elroy eventually offers Tim what he wants, a chance to escape to Canada. He takes him fishing in Canadian waters, only fifty yards or so away from the Canadian “promise” land. It’s here, that Tim finds out he isn’t willing to skip the draft and flee to Canada. He then begins the long journey home, and then to the war zone of Vietnam. Is that a symbol? More than likely it is, in his book Tm loved to fill the pages with thoughtful ideas and lessons about life, even if you didn’t expect it. In Thomas’s book, he has an entire chapter dedicated to the finding of symbols in others writings.
If applied, then the scene when Kiowa and Henry are finding a place to set up camp and stumble across a couple of monks, is a huge symbol. They monks are accepting and kindly towards the strangers (Kiowa and Henry) that they just met. They welcome them and give them a place to stay in their pagoda, even helping them clean their weapons. The symbolic undertone teaches an important life lesson, be kind to all who may come across your path, and accept them for who and what they are. Even though these books have so much more to offer, these are only a few similarities between the two books and what can be taken from them.
