Cultural Context of The Things They Carried by Tim OBrien Free Essay Example, 1000 words

O Brien uses this stylistic device with the aim not to embellish the language but to escalate the intensity of emotional charge of the piece and present the full picture of the situation the young men found themselves in. By means of listing the things the men carried, the author of the piece addresses the difficulties, both physical and emotional, the soldiers faced during the war in Vietnam. The historical background on the participation of Americans in the Vietnam War, the reasons for such participation, the number of casualties, and consequences of such experience explain the emotional tension of the entire short story. Referred to by Americans as the Vietnam War (the Vietnamese call this period The American War ), the US military intervention to Vietnam took place from 1965 to 1973, which appeared to be the longest war in the history of the United States. Before the conflict, Vietnam was split into two parts: the pro-communist north and pro-American south, which were divided b y a demilitarized zone. Initially, the elections were planned to hold with the aim to find a solution to the problem but they never took place. We will write a custom essay sample on Cultural Context of The Things They Carried by Tim OBrien or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/page In particular, during the American intervention, about 250,000 of South Vietnamese soldiers and about 60,000 American soldiers were estimated to be killed or lost in action (BBC News). Those American soldiers who were lucky to return home also suffered a lot.