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"The Things They Carried" Sentence Analysis

"The things they carried were largely determined by necessity," so claims the narrator behind the story of  "The Things They Carried." 

But what does this sentence mean exactly? It's tough to pin a definitive answer down, especially when you read on: Henry Dobbins, for example, carries "extra rations," that is, canned peaches in heavy syrup over pound cake. Dave Jensen carries dental floss. Meanwhile, Ted Lavender, before his death, even carried pounds of marijuana and tranquilizers. Clearly, "necessity" isn't to be taken literally. 

Yet, if that's true, then what does the narrator mean by "necessity?" To me, this is indicative of how the human condition manifests itself within the harsh conditions created from the setting within the story. I think the story's most profound message is up the alley of "there's a difference of being alive and living." While some of these characters' items aren't "necessities" for being alive, they are necessities for living, and that is what I see as the point of the story: that humans endure, through all, even something as terrible as war.

However, that's just my thoughts, what are yours?

-HD


Comments

  1. Nicole SoutheyMay 13, 2020 at 12:23 AM

    I completely agree with what you are saying. For soldiers who we see having to go through these really challenging experiences they need more motivation than just being alive so having things that make them really feel as though they are living help them get through the tough times.

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