The Things They Carried: American Heroes"Speaking of Courage" in Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried is more than a story about a soldier's personal experience during the Vietnam War. It's more than a story about his fight for his country, God and his fellow soldiers, not to mention his return home. “Speaking of Courage” is not only an allegorical story about the disconnect between Vietnam and the rest of the world, but also an allegory about the disconnect between soldiers and the life they once led. Norman Bowker's flashback to Song Tra Bong, begins the story for cultural analysis. The monsoon represents war as a whole, as it causes violence to spread throughout the world. Over time, the monsoon causes the mud to act like quicksand, sucking up everything it touches. Like the monsoon, war causes men to be conscripted to fight for their country. The mama-sans yelling at the soldiers to get out of the muddy field represents the anti-war world. America is protesting and rebelling for the war to be called off, but the soldiers are ordered to do their jobs, just as Lieutenant Jimmy Cross orders the men to stay on the muddy field. Once the men discover that the camp is a shit camp, it is obvious that the shit camp symbolizes political involvement in the war. World politics starts war and orders men to go out and settle things by fighting each other. When Kiowa begins to sink into the horrible slime, all Bowker can do is watch. This means not only that men are conscripted into war, but also that men are killed one by one. Soldiers of war face death every day and know that, in an instant, they could be the next to die. Bowker; however,… middle of paper… Bowker almost winning the Silver Star symbolizes how America neither won the Vietnam War nor lost it. O'Brien uses the Fourth of July, Independence Day, as the date of Bowker's homecoming to indicate America's lack of pride in failing to live up to its heroic reputation. At the end of the story, Bowker even watches and enjoys the fireworks display over the lake. The fireworks symbolize the end of the war and a new beginning. Bowker's amusement denotes the soldiers blending back into society. Tim O'Brien's story, "Speaking of Courage," is an allegory that opens the hearts of soldiers. O'Brien's use of metaphor allows the reader to relate on a personal level to the soldiers of the war. The men who fight for their country and die on the battlefield are more than just a number or a casualty. All of these men have a bond that most of the world doesn't understand.