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The Things They Carried
Tim O’Brien
Study Guide
Summary
Plot Overview
Five Key Questions
What Does the Ending Mean?
Summary & Analysis
“The Things They Carried”
“Love”
“Spin”
“On the Rainy River”
“Enemies” & “Friends”
“How to Tell a True War Story”
“The Dentist”
“Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong”
“Stockings”
“Church”
“The Man I Killed”
“Ambush”
“Style”
“Speaking of Courage”
“Notes”
“In the Field”
“Good Form”
“Field Trip”
“The Ghost Soldiers”
“Night Life”
“The Lives of the Dead”
Characters
Character List
Tim O’Brien
Jimmy Cross
Mitchell Sanders
Kiowa
Mary Ann Foster
Norman Bowker
Elroy Berdahl
Main Ideas
Themes
Plot Analysis
Protagonist
Antagonist
Setting
Motifs
Symbols
Genre
Style
Point of View
Tone
Foreshadowing
Key Facts
Is The Things They Carried fiction or memoir?
Quotes
Important Quotations Explained
Further Study
Context
Protests Against the Vietnam War
The Things They Carried and American War Novels
Movie Adaptations
Full Book Quiz
Section Quizzes
Character List
Analysis of Major Characters
Themes, Motifs, and Symbols
"The Things They Carried"
"Love"
"Spin"
"On the Rainy River"
"Enemies" and "Friends"
"How to Tell a True War Story"
"The Dentist"
"Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong"
"Stockings"
"Church"
"The Man I Killed"
"Ambush"
"Style"
"Speaking of Courage"
"Notes"
"In the Field"
"Good Form"
"Field Trip"
"Ghost Soldiers'
"Night Life"
"The Lives of the Dead"
Study Questions
Suggestions for Further Reading
Companion Texts
Writing Help
How to Write Literary Analysis
Suggested Essay Topics
How to Cite This SparkNote
Further study
"In the Field" Quiz
"In the Field" Quiz
1
of 5
What does Cross decide to do in the wake of Kiowa’s death?
Leave the war and go home
Write Kiowa’s parents a letter
Punish the men responsible
Commit suicide
2
of 5
What does Azar do while searching for Kiowa’s body?
He visibly shakes.
He jokes around.
He doesn’t say a word.
He refuses to search.
3
of 5
What does Cross think about while writing the letter?
He never wanted to be a leader.
He’s not a very good writer.
Why Martha doesn’t love him
When he’ll get home
4
of 5
Why does the young soldier want to find Kiowa so badly?
So he can come to terms with Kiowa’s death
Because Kiowa owed him a lot of money
So Kiowa can have a proper Christian burial
Because Kiowa had a picture of his girlfriend
5
of 5
What is Cross thinking about after finding Kiowa’s body?
Golf
Martha
Family
Food
Previous section
"Notes" Quick Quiz
Next section
"Good Form" Quick Quiz
The Things They Carried: Popular pages
CHARACTERS
Character List
CHARACTERS
Tim O’Brien: Character Analysis
MAIN IDEAS
Plot Analysis
MAIN IDEAS
Is The Things They Carried fiction or memoir?
MAIN IDEAS
Important Quotations Explained
MAIN IDEAS
Themes
FURTHER STUDY
Review Quiz
