We began our study of O"Brien's Viet Nam novel ,"The Things They Carried." I provided historical information about the War, the anti-war protests at home , and the plight of Viet Nam veterans upon returning to he U.S. We then discussed the opening pages and the metaphorical significance of the weight the soldiers carry in their backpacks. Joshua did well recognizing the weight the soldiers carry is more than the physical weight of their weapons and clothes but more critically represents the soldiers" guilt, fear. longing for home, and the ghosts of those who have died. We discussed the death of Ted Lavender as lacking glory and meaning and began to construct an analysis comparing Hemingway's view of war in "A Farewell to Arms" with O"Brien's.