Though a small part
of the repetitive first chapter, the line “they carried their own lives” (15)
struck me. In an endless list of things they carry, it seems these men burden
the weight of the world. It seems silly to say that these men carry their own
lives since they are all living, an obvious remark, but it seems to mean more
than this. Carrying your own life implies a burden, as if the lives of these
men were just another object on their backs they were trying to protect.
Without much real living in Vietnam, it is evident that their lives did become
a mere object, something to worry over and wonder about. What would it feel
like to just stop carrying it? Will I be able to bear the burden through the
war and what will it mean to me when this is all over?
The
emotional distance from death becomes clear in the comments about Ted
Lavender’s demise. Kiowa explained the shooting like just another falling
object: “the poor guy just dropped like so much concrete. Boom-down…like
cement” (6). Ted Lavender had stopped carrying this life and it fell like the
weight of the world from him. In the game of war your life becomes an object
you all hold, hoping the weight of your own life, the heaviest object of all,
doesn’t drag you to the ground.
In addition to carrying their own lives, the also carried the lives of each other. As a unit, they were responsible for each other; they watch the backs of their comrades, provide moral support, and physical (when necessary). While "carrying" your own life must be, or at least is described as, a burden, imagine for a second having to "carry the lives of each other". In another vein, describing the act of living as "carrying a life" makes it seem as though dying is not a huge deal; though this is never stated, when described in this manner, "losing a life" appears to be almost as significant as "losing a canteen" or "rounds of ammunition". Very possibly, I think Tim O'Brien might be making a commentary towards the fact that soldiers often are desensitized to the idea of death, or "losing a life", therein making it almost diminish in importance. I think, to your point, "carrying a life" also portrays the idea of 'living in a war' as burdensome and difficult.
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