O’Brien calls his novel a work of fiction, but it is based on the experiences of thousands of men, called to fight for their country in the muck and jungle of a part of the world far removed from their own.
TWIST Graphic Organizer for The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
Storyboard Text
T - TONE
W - WORD CHOICE
I - IMAGERY
S - STYLE
Tim, what's wrong?
T - THEME
O’Brien is hesitant, reluctant, ashamed, and hopeful that telling the story will ease his burden a bit.
embarrassment, confession, squirm, shame, relieve
"...I’m hoping to relieve at least some of the pressure on my dreams."
O’Brien utilizes parallel structure to emphasize the fact that he has held this secret inside for a long time. He uses the phrase, “not to” and “not even”, which points to people he probably should have told, but has not.
This passage highlights the burden of this secret shame that Tim O’Brien has been carrying, showing the greater theme of the emotional burdens people carry and hope to relieve somehow. For O’Brien, he hopes that writing out his confession will ease his guilt.