The Things They Carried

The story, “The Things They Carried” had an interesting message behind it. At first, it seemed very repetitive and I wasn’t sure right off the bat I made an assumption of what the story was going to be like. After reading the first couple pages, it got more and more interesting. Not knowing much about the war, I was able to easily understand the short story.At first it talks about “the things they carried” referring to the weapons and all the other items they needed to survive. Jimmy Cross who was suppose to be making sure the soldiers were in line and doing the right thing was too concerned with his love for Martha and his focus was only on her. Because of his negligence to his soldiers—Ted Lavender was killed. Jimmy Cross knew it was his fault; it would have never happened had he been not so worried about the love and obsession of Martha. The end of the story is where I think the writer wanted to get the point across to the reader. He talks about it was no longer going to be just the things they carried outside but it needed to be the things they carry inside. Jimmy Cross burned the letters and pictures of Martha, and planned to dispose of the “good luck” pebble that he carried. He stepped up to the plate and realized that he was the leader for his soldiers and he couldn’t let another death happen due to his lack of leadership. Another good point the writer got across was the weight of the war that all the 

men carried! 

The image was taken from: http://the-things-they-carred.tripod.com/

Here is a link to check out some quotes from Tim O'Brien

Poetry Of Witness

   First, I must say that some of the poems were extremely difficult for me to understand. I had to re-read and use a dictionary for some of the words. I would have to say that the poem "Photograph from September 11" really stood out to me. I  look back to 2001 and remember that day like it was yesterday. My friend had just picked me up and we were on our way to school. I can remember the sadness that filled the halls and the look that people had on their face as the TV’s blared with the sound of the divesting event. The poem was short and straight to the point. It was simple and easy to understand---yet it was so moving. As soon as I saw the title I thought to myself, this is something that occurred in my life time it should a good one.  The line, “They jumped from the burning floors” (Szymborska 1). Right away it brought sadness to my heart. It was like the whole day flashed in from of my eyes. So many innocent people lost their lives because of this. I couldn’t imagine witnessing such a horrible thing.

   "Song of Napalm" was  interesting--yet it sent chills down my spine. I don’t know a whole lot about the war so I had to do some research. In turn that helped me understand what exactly everything in the poem meant. The poem was written to his wife and he watched the bombs drop. He talked about how insane he was and the smell of the bodies. One line that stood out to me was, “And the girl runs only as far as the Napalm allows until her burning tendons and crackling muscles draw her up into that final position” (Weigl 1). Not only did that completely disgust me but it made me think of how wars really affect someone and their well-being. I could never imagine having to deal with something like this. I am coming to form opinions about these poems now that I understand them a little better.

The first photo was taken from: http://www.triple-tri.com/ttblog/index.php?m=200909

Second was taken from:http://www.puppetgov.com/2009/09/16/pictures-of-war-can-carry-more-moral-meaning-than-thousands-of-words/

Here is a site to check out!!

Works Cited :
Bruce Weigl, “Song of Napalm” from Archaeology of the Circle: New and Selected Poems. Copyright © 1999 by Bruce Weigl. Reprinted with the permission of Grove/Atlantic, Inc.,www.groveatlantic.com. 


Wislawa Szymborska, “Photograph from September 11” from Monologue of a Dog. Copyright © 2005 by Wislawa Szymborska. Reprinted with permission of Harcourt, Inc. 

Sam Hamill

There are so many points that are rational in the article The Necessity to Speak written by Sam Hamill. I found it very interesting the perspective that he put things into. He really gives it to you cut and dry. I have always thought that poetry contained a lot of emotion and most often used to express emotion.  But after reading what Sam Hamill said “We are dead wrong”(Hamill 549). He explained why he thinks that—it makes sense. It’s important to speak—“to get out of hell” as Hamill would say--writing is one’s escape. Over the years I have been told and read from many authors what “good writers and readers” should consist of. It’s important to know what creative writing is being done for. What is the purpose? Who are you writing to? And where would something like this be read. It’s so easy when reading to get caught up in the “What and why’s?” Stay focused and everything else will fall into place. All those things Sam Hamill reiterates in the article. There are so many humans who just ignore and pretend not to have emotion. That is a strong statement Hamill made—it is not only true but sad. Why are people so cruel? One of my favorite parts of the whole article is when Hamill talked about how true poets are challenged with telling people what they already know and do not want to hear. When I hear that I think of how often that statement is used. It is used in several types of relationships in different aspects of someone’s life. He had so many great ways of explaining how deep poetry is and can be. He talked a lot about violence and how using the right “names” is so essential—and will make such a huge impact. His third way is very profound—“it beings with accepting responsibility for our own words and deeds.” If only the world was actually like that. Poetry is intense and can be looked at in many different ways. I am defiantly going to keep in mind what Sam Hamill wrote.

Work Cited:

Hamill, Sam. The Necessity to Speak. 6/17/2010. Print.    

This image was taken from: http://harwoodartcenter.org/ss/community-events/

Here is a link to check out more about Sam Hamill