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The Emotional Burden of War: Weapons and Weight in "The Things They Carried"

In Tim O'Brien's poignant narrative, "The Things They Carried," soldiers bear not just weaponry but the heavy emotional load of war. From the PRC-25 radios and M-79 grenade launchers to the harrowing realities of disease and loss, each soldier carries their fears and memories. Amidst the chaos of Vietnam, they grapple with the complexities of bravery, despair, and the stark truth of their existence. This exploration reveals how war is both a gruesome challenge and an unexplainable adventure, leaving an indelible mark on those who endure it.

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The Emotional Burden of War: Weapons and Weight in "The Things They Carried"

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  1. THE THINGS THEY CARRIED

  2. ANPRC25As and RTO, Mitchell Sanders carried the PRC-25 radio, a killer, 26 pounds with its battery.

  3. M79 • Among the grunts, some carried the M-79 grenade launcher, 5.9 pounds unloaded, a reasonably light weapon except for the ammunition, which was heavy.

  4. BAYONET • …and blackjacks and bayonets and c-4 plastic explosives…

  5. COLT COMMANDO

  6. UZI…and Simonov carbines and black market Uzis and .38-caliber Smith &Wesson handguns…

  7. RPG7 CHI-COM…and grease guns and captured AK-47’s and Chi-Coms and RPGs…

  8. M60 • As a big man, therefore a machine gunner, Henry Dobbins carried the M-60, which weighed 23 pounds unloaded, but which was almost always loaded.

  9. PLASTIC EXPLOSIVESTo blow tunnels they carried one-pound blocks of pentrite high explosives, four blocks to a man, 68 pounds in all. They carried wiring detonators, and battery-powered clackers. Dave Jenson carried ear plugs.

  10. BOUNCING BETTY • “Step out of line, hit a mine; follow the dink, you’re in the pink.” – Rat Kiley

  11. THE THINGS THEY CARRIED • In addition to the three standard weapons—the M-60, M-16, and M-79—they carried whatever presented itself, or whatever seemed appropriate as a means of killing or staying alive.

  12. They carried all the emotional baggage of men who might die.

  13. They carried diseases, among them malaria and dysentery. They carried lice and ringworm and leeches and paddy algae and various rots and molds. They carried the land itself– Vietnam…

  14. For the most part they carried themselves with poise, a kind of dignity. Now and then, however, there were times of panic…

  15. They carried him [Ted Lavender] out to the dry paddy, established security, and sat smoking the dead man’s dope until the chopper came.

  16. A friend of his gets killed, so about a week later Rat sits down and writes a letter to the guy’s sister.

  17. “Well, that’s Nam,” he said. “Garden of Evil.””

  18. You want my opinion, Mitchell Sanders said, there’s a definite moral here. Henry Dobbins thought about it.Yeah well, he finally said. I don’t see no moral.There it is man.

  19. War is hell, but that’s not the half of it, because war is also mystery and terror and adventure and courage and discovery and holiness and pity and despair and longing and love. War is nasty; war is fun. War is thrilling; war is drudgery. War makes you a man; war makes you dead.

  20. …you can’t even tell a true war story. Sometimes it’s just beyond the telling.

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