The Presence of Death in Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried"

This essay analyzes Tim O Brien's story "The Things They Carried" to show how each character is motivated by their awareness of death. The student identifies how this knowledge destabilizes the men's concept of power, creates feelings of guilt and anxiety, and contributes to crude and immoral behaviors that are chalked up to "following orders" or the war.

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Bridget's feedback:

"Your essay is off to a good start, with a clear thesis and body paragraphs that each focus on a specific aspect of the discussion, providing a solid framework that guides the reader. There is currently some slippage between the introduction and conclusion in terms of cause and effect of the men's behavior: at first, death's proximity is the main factor, but the conclusion introduces the element of war and obeying orders; indeed, some of the wording ("Taking orders is another way of...") suggests a related but ultimately separate discussion. As you move forward, consider what role this other point about war and orders plays in your essay; if you want to discuss it in the conclusion, it must be woven into the body paragraphs.

The opening lines of the first three paragraphs take a little too long to settle into the discussion. The later body paragraphs provide a good model of immediately rooting the analysis in the text: use these to trim away the overly general ruminations that open the earlier paragraphs. This will keep things moving and maintain the focus."

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In-text citation:

(Kibin, 2024)

Reference list entry:

Kibin. (2024). The presence of death in tim o'brien's "the things they carried". http://www.kibin.com/essay-examples/the-presence-of-death-in-tim-obriens-the-things-they-carried-oJQ4wXQk

Be sure to capitalize proper nouns (e.g. Egypt) and titles (e.g. Macbeth) in the essay title portion of your citation.

In-text citation:

("The Presence of Death in Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried".")

Works Cited entry:

"The Presence of Death in Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried"." Kibin, 2024, www.kibin.com/essay-examples/the-presence-of-death-in-tim-obriens-the-things-they-carried-oJQ4wXQk

Footnote:

1. "The Presence of Death in Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried"." Kibin, 2024. http://www.kibin.com/essay-examples/the-presence-of-death-in-tim-obriens-the-things-they-carried-oJQ4wXQk.

Bibliography entry:

"The Presence of Death in Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried"." Kibin, 2024. http://www.kibin.com/essay-examples/the-presence-of-death-in-tim-obriens-the-things-they-carried-oJQ4wXQk.