From Vietnam to Paper Set in the midst of the Cold War era, the Vietnam War was not just a war for land conquest, but for many a battle to protect democracy and fight communism. Just like any other war account, the details are gruesome and even harder to imagine. However, after the Vietnam War, one author, who served in the war, decided to take on the task and give a historical account of one of the most grueling wars ever fought. Tim O'Brien is a Vietnam veteran who wrote the novel The Things They Carry. There is a fine line to walk when writing accounts of war in a way that not only informs but also entertains; however, Tim O'Brien navigates it successfully. In The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, his use of symbolism and metafiction helps portray the events that happen to soldiers fighting in Vietnam. The novel not only provides insight into the war itself, but also reflects on the effects it had on those who participated in it. They Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien is a novel that is a collection of short stories that describe the war in and of itself. journey that the narrator and his fellow soldiers from Alpha Company undertake. Each chapter is told through the lens of the various objects each soldier carries with them. While some objects are physical and live in the here and now, others are intangible and have a deeper meaning such as “the weight of memory” (O'Brien). The narrator and the author share many similarities: their name is Tim O'Brien, they both served in Vietnam, and they are both authors writing about Vietnam. Although this novel draws from factual information and true events, the novel is a work of fiction. This highlights the ambiguity of war and the rarity of reliable information...... middle of document...... April 2014. Kaplan, Steven. "The Narrator's Immortal Uncertainty in Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried" Criticism 35.1 (1993): 43. Academic research completed. Web. April 11, 2014. McCarthy, Joanne. "The Things They Carried" Masterplots II: Short Story Series, revised edition (2004): 1-2. Literary reference center. Network. April 11, 2014.Nomura, Koki. “Symbolic Aesthetics in the Short Story “The Man I Killed” by Tim O'Brien 16.1 (2008): 87-95. Literary Reference Center. Network. April 11, 2014. O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried. New York : Broadway Books, 2009. EBook.Smith, Jack. "The Things It Carries With It: For Tim O'brien, the Vietnam War remained a crucible in his fiction, but so did the power of imagination and memory and ' Our elusive inner worlds' loom" Writer (Kalmbach Publishing Co.) 123.7 (2010): 16-47. Web. 2014.