The Things They Carried

We continued reading and discussing the story in class. Students are to finish reading the story for HW and complete the following questions: The Things They Carried Study Questions The Things They Carried: 1. In what sense does Jimmy love Martha? Why does he construct this elaborate (mostly fictional) relationship with her? What does he get out of it? 2. When is Jimmy most likely to think about Martha? Why is he thinking about her while one of his platoon members is in the tunnel? 3. Why did Lieutenant Jimmy Cross feel guilty about Ted Lavender’s death? In what sense is Ted Lavender’s death his fault? 4. Here is his excuse for allowing his men to be lax: “He was just a kid at war, in love.” Why does Jimmy use this excuse? In what sense does it excuse him? In what sense, doesn’t it? 5. Why do the soldiers tell jokes about war, about killing? Why do they use profanity? 6. How is the idea of weight used and developed in this story (“Jungle boots, 2.1 pounds.”)? How do you, as a reader, feel reading those lists of weight? What effect does it have on you? 7. If this is a story about sacrifice, what does Jimmy sacrifice, and why? 8. How has Jimmy changed by the end of the story? How will he be a different person from this point on? What has he learned about himself? Or, to put it another way, what has he lost and what has he gained? 9. Do you think the war will affect him in a different way now that he refuses to think about Martha? How will it be different? What did “Martha” save him from?