Things They Carried 2

                       The soliders carried things both emotionally and physically. They carried compasses, mapes, food in cans, water, knifes, guns, and backpacks full of supplies that they might need on their journey. The soliders also carried emotional baggage. They were scared and nervous. They didn't know if they were going to die that day or when their live would end, not saying other people do, but they were put at risk constantly, so they were constantly 'checking their backs'. They were also embrassed to show their fear. They could not fully express their emotions to fellow soliders, because they had to be tough and strong. Fear was not allowed to be shown, only strength and courage.       
                       The character I want to talk about is Jimmy Cross. Jimmy is an officer who was in charge of about five or six men. He was the man who was supposed to look out for them and make sure they were protected. He was the man in charge of their missions and how they went about their daily lives. Jimmy is also a senstive man who is in love with Martha. Martha is a woman that Jimmy has loved from afar for far to long. He keeps pictures of her playing volleyball in her white shorts and he carries a small good luck relic that was mailed to him from her. The relic is a small pebble. Now at this point in time Jimmy is head over heels for this woman, then all of a sudden Ted Lavender gets shot and he was so busy day-dreaming about his Martha that he wasn't fully able to pay attention and focus on his surroundings. After this occerence Jimmy not only blames himself, but begins to blame Martha. If he was thinking about her then maybe he could have saved Ted's life. After this thought process completes in his mind he begins to hate her. He burns her picture and throws away the pebble along a trail in Vietnam. He is now a more hardened soul who will always blame the death of his friend on himself and the woman he once loved. I think that Jimmy will have to make some very difficult descisions and he will eventually tell Martha his long awaited feelings for her.
                 In order to read something about a certain occerence in history you need to learn some background information on the subject at hand, otherwise you will constantly get lost and probably give up on the novel, because you don't know enough to process the plot of the book. We needed to know what really started this war and why these men were fighting for the United States across the seas. Going into a historic novel blindly is a bad idea in the first place. In order to read and fully understand a historic novel you need to be prepared with information on the subject instead of learning as you go.