The things they carriedWomen and their role in the things they carriedIn the book The Thing's They Carried, the stories of the soldiers men and their relationship with the Vietnam War. However, it also looks at the stories of these women and how they affected the soldiers and their experiences in Vietnam. As men faced the horrors of war, women stood by them, but not as much in the public eye as the male soldiers. O'Brien uses women such as Martha, Linda, and Kathleen in The Things They Carried to emphasize how vital remembrance and reward were to him and other soldiers in Vietnam. One of the first women introduced to the reader is Martha. Martha is the love interest of Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, although she has always only considered him a friend and nothing more. O'Brien's uses his story and his mistakes to show how soldiers were completely separated from the war. Once the war ended, the soldiers returned home to try to resume normal lives. But as was shown with Cross and Martha, it didn't happen that way. Trying to cope with all the deaths he found in Vietnam, Cross doesn't believe Martha is not a virgin and thinks they could still live together. This was meant to be a comfort and safety mechanism when he eventually faced rejection and death all around him. It got to the point that he only thought about it until Ted Lavandin died. Trying to rid himself of his guilt, he "burned Martha's letters." Then he burned both photographs…He realized it was just a gesture…you couldn't burn the blame” (O'Brien 23) This shows that he knew that his obsessions with Martha are what led to the death of Ted Lavender, and even when he realizes... middle of paper ... he just sees his father's strange actions. Whereas someone who knows its history would see it as a final act of remembrance, bringing closure to the Kiowa spirit and history. Overall, the women in The Things They Carried were important in making the reader understand the different emotions O' Brien was trying to show him, remembering those who had fallen, learning to forgive himself and move on. The most notable women in the novel expressing these points were Martha, Kathleen, and Linda. They were essential in showing the key elements of O'Brien's life that led to the turning points that led to the creation of this novel and his ability to be at peace with what happened in Vietnam. He finally accepted what happened and embraced it instead of avoiding it. Works CitedRoman O'Brien, Tim. The things they carried. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin, 1990.Print.