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In The Things They Carried , the characters themselves probably could not tell you why they carried many of the things they did. The things they carried can be divided into three basic groups, the things that everyone had to carry in order to survive, the things ....

Middle of Essay
.... loved unrequitedly. Another example and proof of irrelevance to survival was Ted Lavenders six or seven ounces of dope and nine extra M-79 Grenades which he was carrying when he was shot in the head. Extras such as these really did nothing more than give the men a false sense of security, which was probably necessary to cope with their surroundings. Last but certainly not least they carried with them love, guilt, memories, and fear of death. Lieutenant cross, for example carried love, guilt, and even though he tried never to show it, fear. Tim O'Brien shows us this in the passage shortly after the death of Ted Lavender, "He pictured Martha' ....