The Things They Carried - Book Report/Review Example

due: The Things They Carried Via the concept of friendship, the soldiers in the book the things they carried were able to keep their mind and heart alive in the deadly war. Friendship is termed as a positive and strong, effective assurance that exist between two individuals (Rubin & Bukowski 218). Friendship is anticipated to attain socio-emotional objectives. For instance, friends are expected to provide companionship, help, security as well as emotional help. This paper will discuss the way of life in the Vietnam War, as described by Tim O’Brien, altered, warped, mutated, changed or reaffirmed the commonly-held/historically based on the definition of the concept of ‘friendship’. There are three types of friendship namely (1) utilitarian; (2) pleasure; and (3) character. In utilitarian friendship, people befriend others because of some good they can gain from them for their personal interest. While, in pleasure, friendship, individuals tend to like people, not because of their moral nature, but because they seem to be cordial. On the other hand, character friendship, individuals bond with each other because of their specific virtuous personality (Kristjánsson 113). From this perspective, it is clear that friendship played a fundamental role in motivating Alpha Company soldiers in their struggle with mutual support and understanding. The type of friendship exhibited in the novel is ‘utilitarian friendship’. This is evident where it is written that Dave Jensen and Lee Strunk teamed up to carry out ambushes (OBrien 49). One can see that these individuals formed a friendship to benefit from the each other during the war. For example, Jensen was able to help Strunk after he stepped on a rigged mortar that amputated one of his legs. From this point of view, the Alpha Company soldiers possessed a different kind of friendship, that is, ‘utilitarian friendship’. The concept of friendship runs throughout the novel. For instance, in the chapters, ‘Friends’ and ‘The Man I Killed’, friendship has been portrayed as an important tool to survive in deadly battles. For example, in the Vietnam War, friendship not only helped the soldiers to survive in difficult conditions, but also played an invaluable role in softening the negative effects of the end of the war in the minds of the soldiers of the Alpha Company. Moreover, it helped them to obtain mental strength during the war. This is precisely in Kiowa’s response, “Just forget that crud”, he said… “No sweat, man. What else could you do?” (OBrien 87). For example, when O’Brien became confused and felt guilt for killing a Viet soldier, his friend Kiowa came to him to support his act. From Kiowa’s action, it is clear that soldiers cared about what happened to their colleagues. Kiowa said, “Tim, it’s war. The guy was not Heidi-he had a weapon, right? It is a tough thing, for sure, but you got to cut out that starring” (OBrien 88). This display of sympathy and concern for the mental state of a companion soldier adds to the concept of friendship as revealed in the novel. Along with the positive effect of friendship on the soldiers of Alpha Company, there was also a show of distrust among the soldiers. Generally, utilitarian friendship encounters disagreement because it is founded on the basis of mutual ‘trust’ and hence it is subject to recrimination (McWilliams, Bathory & Schwartz 54). For this reason, the Alpha Company soldiers signed a pact, which was a legal binding document that made their friendship free from recrimination. This means that a soldier could kill his friend if he was in a bad state after an attack and could not be accused of any fault. For example, Strunk and Jensen were friends but each had a feeling of distrust, which is evident from the fact that Strunk became fearful when he opened his eyes while moaning and saw Jensen near him. He thought that Jensen would try to kill him as written in the pact. Strunk had to beg Jensen not to kill him, which shows that the level of friendship between the two was utilitarian, as it is usually between the soldiers of the same company fighting for a mutual cause. In addition, Jensen’s feeling of relief at the death of Strunk shows that Jensen was more concerned about the promise he made to Strunk. If Jensen was to act as per the contract, he had the chance to kill Strunk when he was hit rather than assist him to the dust-off chopper. The emotional feeling exhibited by Jensen is stronger than the power of the contract. This shows that the soldiers of Alpha Company had a confused feeling about the nature of the relationship they had with other soldiers. Jensen knew what was right and wrong in honoring the pact. About the notes ‘speaking of courage’, it is evident that human find life meaningful because of friendship. Having friends means that one has a companion to visit places and carry out activities together. There is evidence that people who have friends live longer and are less likely to become depressed. Friends motivate and challenge their mates to be their best (Bryan 6). This explains the reason Bowker had trouble in finding a useful use for his life after the war. It is, therefore; correct to conclude that during the war the soldiers had developed a special bond through friendship. The friendship that existed among the soldiers of Alpha Company was special such that Bowker never experienced such a feeling as a car wash attendant, salesman, short-order cook or a janitor. Despite the feeling of loneliness Bowker experienced, he was surrounded by loving and caring parents who were ready to support him. The author states that Bowker joined the junior college in his hometown that did not have a significant impact on his life. Even engaging in various activities such as playing basketball and driving did not give him a reason to live. Bowker felt that his life ended when his friend Kiowa died (OBrien 106). This may imply that Kiowa and Bowker had become true soul mates. On the other hand, individuals may perceive friendship negatively. This is evident where Bowker asserts that people act too nice, too polite in a way that he felt they were frightened of asking the wrong questions (OBrien 106). He never appreciated the fact that people looked at him as a hero; he viewed the experience as a betrayal of all his friends who died in the battlefield. The lack of appreciation resulted from the fact that he was not alone in Vietnam War. He had many friends who never made it alive and his ‘hero’ status was a contribution of others. Additionally, he despised himself for having killed so many people during the war. As a result, he was not at all proud of his achievements (OBrien 106). Likewise, friendship is based on situations. The fact that the war story left out the significant parts of the Vietnam War, especially the shit and the death of Kiowa made Bowker feel helpless. Bowker and Tim’s friendship changed because of this situation. Tim did not honor Bowker’s wishes to acknowledge Kiowa and the happenings in the Vietnam War. This meant that Kiowa’s support as a friend was totally disregarded. Tim manipulated the story to suit his personal feelings that broke the friendship between himself and Bowker. The silence signifies the gap that developed between the two friends. The act of Bowker hanging himself is an indication of a dead friendship. This confirms that friendship depends on reciprocal acts of individuals that must satisfy the expectations of each other. Indeed, the friendship that existed among the soldiers in Vietnam War was ‘utilitarian friendship’. Works cited Bryan, Dale-Marie. Top 10 Tips for Building Friendships. New York: Rosen Pub, 2013. Internet resource. Kristjánsson, Kristján. Aristotle, Emotions, and Education. Aldershot, Hants, England: Ashgate, 2007. Internet resource. McWilliams, Wilson C, Peter D. Bathory, and Nancy L. Schwartz. Friends and Citizens: Essays in Honor of Wilson Carey Mcwilliams. Lanham, Md: Rowan & Littlefield, 2001. Print. Obrien, Tim. The things they carried. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. Rubin, Kenneth H., and William M. Bukowski, eds. Handbook of peer interactions, relationships, and groups. Guilford Press, 2011. Read More