Students, please post your three best interpretive questions so far for the novel The Things They Carried.
Simply include your questions underneath this post by using the Comments
feature and that way we will have all our brainstorming questions
available in one place here on the blog.
The idea is to share ideas for Essay Two and find a question or thesis
idea that we are interested in and think we can write about with good
evidence and interpretation for Essay Two.
Clint
ReplyDeleteWhy does Azar apologize after the body is found?
Why does O’Brien change his story?
Why does O’Brien make up stories?
Mahmood
Why does O’Brien talk about the difference between real truth and fact or story-truth and fiction?
Why didn’t Linda say anything after Nick removed her cap?
Cassandra
Witnessing/seeing death, does this change our experience with death?
Readers are unaware whether stories are fact or fiction;; does this affect the message of the story?
Do you think O’Brien’s daughter was too young to understand the purpose of the visit to ‘Nam?
Said
Why is it so hard for O’Brien to get revenge from Bobby Jorgenson and how does his plan for revenge get complicated by asking Azar to help?
How does Morty Phillips get sick?
How can you tell a true war story?
Jake
Why do soldiers exaggerate their stories?
How do the stories that O’Brien tells bring back the ones who died?
Why is Linda somebody O’Brien still thinks about?
Lou
How might the stories in the book help veterans today?
Why did Tim go back to Vietnam?
Will Tim ever stop writing about the dead?
Colton
How did the war change Mary Anne Bell and Tim? Compare and contrast.
Why write?
Anthony
How would Tim see the world differently if Linda never died?
Why did Tim put Kiowa’s shoes in the muck? What is the purpose of ritual?
Why was the kid so desperate to find Billie’s picture?
Abdi
Why were the young soldiers all feeling guilty about Kiowa’s death?
Why was Azar making jokes after Kiowa’s death?
What are stories good for?
Mitch
Why was Jimmy Cross elected leader if he did not want to be in the Army?
Why did the little boy give Tim a picture in the middle of the field?
Why did Tim bring his daughter to Vietnam?
Brandon
Why was Linda brought into the story? Why does O’Brien use stories from long before or after the war?
Why do the soldiers mock the old man or the dead in general?
Why did Rat Kiley go insane?
Williamson
What forces influence Tim to fight the war?
Why does O’Brien use fiction to tell his war story?
Why did Rat Kiley break down?
Emily
How has loss impacted the soldier’s morals, conscience and
How does war change people’s perspectives on loss, morality, and superstition?
What are the purposes of stories?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAmanda
ReplyDeleteWhy was getting revenge on Jorgensen so important?
Why does O’Brien use short stories to keep the dead alive?
What is the role of shame and courage?