The Vietnam War

The Vietnam War (1959 - 1975)

• 1954: End of French colonial rule • 1954: Vietnam divided in Geneva accords• 1959: Start of Viet Cong guerilla attacks on South• 1964: Tonkin Incident / Americanization of the war• 1968: Tet-Offensive• 1969: My Lai Massacre• 1969: Vietnamization of the war• 1974: Withdrawal of American troops• 1975: Surrender of South Vietnam, end of war

The Things They CarriedTim O’Brien

Bild durch Klicken auf Symbol hinzufügenThey carried all they could bear, and then some, including a silent awe for the terrible power of the things they carried.

"The things they carried were determined by necessity"

"[…] plus the unweighed fear"

physical objects

letters can openers knives ‘dog tags’ canteens weapons

"emotional baggage"

fears / anxieties grief terror love shameful memories common secrets

"The Things They Carried"

Group Task

Choose a character from the story and list the things he carries. Then discuss what each of the items on your list tells us about…

… the character … the war

Jimmy Cross Kiowa Dave Jensen Rat Kiley Henry Dobbins Ted Lavender Norman Bowker Mitchell Sanders Lee Strunk

Writing Task

Write a 3oo word essay about a special thing you carry/carried . Describe the object in detail, the mood it evokes and the reasons for its importance.

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After a day’s march he would dig his foxhole, wash his hands under a canteen, unwrap the letters […] and spend the last hour of light pretending.

Foxhole

He was just a kid at war, in love. He was twenty-four years old. He couldn’t help it.

US draft

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Will your flashlight go dead? Do rats carry rabies? If you screamed, how far would the sound carry? Would your buddies hear it?

‘Tunnel rats’

Like cement, Kiowa whispered in the dark. I swear to God – boom – down. Not a word.

VC snipers