It is therefore only natural for some people to sometimes fantasize about the things they most desire. In literary works like “The Things They Carried,” “The Glass Menagerie,” and “Facing It,” the authors Tim O’Brien, Tennessee Williams, and Yeses Communal a respectively, publicized their characters quest to change their situations. In “The Things The eye Carried,” the narrator expressed his wishful intentions to change his relationship with his FRR lend Martha.
In “The Glass Menagerie,” the character Laura of the Winnfield family conveyed h Peloponnesus and insecurity as a result from her lethally circumstance, hindering her ability to s socially function in life like any normal person, and forcing her to create a world of illusion as pop SSE to living in reality. In “Facing It,” the narrator longed to have a reconnection with his friend s lost in war.
The characters effort to pursue their desires by living in a world of fantasy convey deed by their thoughts and reflections, led them to constant struggles to differentiate and k pep a balance between both worlds, resulting in the creation of two parallel worlds (a world of illusion in contrast to living in reality). Bangui 2 Thoughts have been a significant medium through which the authors of all thro literary works have demonstrated struggle between illusion and reality. In the story ” The Things They Carried,” author Tim O’Brien used the character Jimmy Cross’s thoughts to Cree et a fantasy world.
The story told of Jimmy Cross’s relationship with his friend back home Martha, with whom he communicates with on a regular basis. Furthermore, the author Tim O’Brien revealed Jimmy Cross’s thoughts openly to the readers on his delusional thoughts tow rids Martha, which brought about his struggle to separate his fantasies from reality. For example, he would often retire his night wondering “if Martha was a virgin” (O’Brien 344). Other instant sees where he vividly described Martha from the pictures: “Her eyes were gray and neutral, h err lips slightly Open as she stared straighten at the camera… err legs, he thought, were Alamo SST certainly the legs off virgin, dry and without hair” (O’Brien 345). Other examples were times Lieutenant Cross would go back in time and reflex CT about some of the special moments he shared with Martha in the past before he De parted for the war, like their movie date: “the movie was Bonnie and Clyde , during the final scene he touched her knew… He remembered kissing her good night at the dorm door” and how he wish he could have done things differently with Martha: “He should’ve carried her up the stairs to err room and tied her to the bed and touched that left knee all night long” (O’Brien 346).
Truth a bout “Illusion vs.. Reality” themed in this story was in fact confirmed by the author himself Tim O’Brien in an interview where he was asked to give his reason on why he “blurred the line b twine fiction and nonfiction” (Smith). According to Mr.. O’Brien, his first justification was that he wanted to “compose a fiction with the texture, sound and authenticating weight of n nonfiction… With an interesting, compelling, and fresh way of telling a story” (Smith). Mr..
Brine’s second reason Bangui 3 f why he told the story the way he did is because he wanted the readers to k now that soldiers in war are not just cold hearted and programmed to fight, but they also expire once normal, everyday activities like heartbreak – “Yes, there is a real war going, with real ca qualities and real horror, but at the same time those realities are being processed in a mix of m Emory and imagination” (Smith). Jimmy Cross’s fantasy to be loved so dearly by Martha SE parted him from the realities of war and being an efficient leader to his subordinates.
Likewise in the poem “facing It,” the narrator uses reflection through the use f memories and flashbacks. In this poem, the author Yeses Communally like It m O’Brien shared the reality Of the Vietnam War. However, in the poem “Facing It,” the author w ho is also the narrator is not presently in the war like Tim O’Brien Jimmy Cross, but an ex. older/veteran who is visiting the “Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D. C’ (Marvin, p era. L).
The narrator’s visit to the memorial brought back unpleasant memories, feeling of guilt, and flashbacks of his past experiences which made it difficult for him to control hi s awareness of mime and of what is real or not; the narrator was unable to differentiate the m memories from his past to what was currently happening as he was in the Memorial. For example e from line 1427, as the narrator go through the names of the soldiers lost in war, he said: go down the 58,022 names, half expecting to find my own in letters like smoke.
I touch the name Andrew Johnson; I see booby trap’s white flash… A plane in the Bangui 4 sky. A white vets image floats closer to me, then his pale eyes look through mine. (Communally 651 ) The narrator expressed his feeling of guilt when he revealed about expecting o find his name among the other soldiers who lost their lives in the war which might signify the at he would have preferred dying an honorable death along with his friends in battle than be in a memorial honoring them.
It almost seems like he didn’t want to deal with the fact that h e was alive but his friends were not. When the narrator saw his friend’s name Andrew Johnson, h e started having flashbacks about memories of his experience the war. According to Thomas Marvin, the memorial was the place where “past, present, and future meets,” where people e came to rekindle their relationships with the dead (Marvin).
The narrator’s ability to vividly ream ember the exact circumstance in which his comrades died reflects the overwhelming guilt that overshadows him. The narrators inability to accept and come to terms with the truth and reality about the loss of his veteran friends led him to struggle with illusions about the war. In line 293 1, the narrator said he saw “in the black mirror a woman trying to erase names,” but then MO meets later he realized that he was only looking at a woman “brushing a boys hair” (Synonym kaka 650).
The narrators wishful hopes that the memorial will help him rekindle a form of reel kinship and communication with the dead, and his overpowering desire to resurrect his FAA Lien companions led him to have illusionary visions and misinterpretation of reality. Lastly, in the play ‘The Glass Menagerie,” the author Tennessee Williams also used reflections through the use of flashbacks to show the struggles the characters go through to Bangui 5 differentiate the present from the past (Wang).
According to Gun Wang Teen Jesse Williams has always been known to create literary works where the characters live in a word old of fantasy, and struggle from “selections” (Wang). To further on the topic of fantasy, in the play “The Glass Menagerie,” the authors use flash backs, selections, and illusion was most lay centered on the character Laura. According to the play, Laura was the youngest of a family oft here which included her mother Amanda, and her brother Tom Winnfield. The character Laura is said to be crippled since childhood, as a result of an illness.
Laurel’s disability has led her to build some sought of defense mechanism where she alienates herself from the outside w roll and reality. According to the play, Laura took great interest in glass animals which she has collection of, serving as distraction and excuse for her to face the real world. These hidden emotions of insecurity and confidence surfaced when she rekindled with her Old school m ate Jim. Jim O’Connor was invited to the house one evening by Laurel’s brother Tom who s also Jims coworker at a warehouse, for dinner.
Laurel’s mother Amanda had underlying intentions for the dinner, which was for Jim to meet Laura in hopes that they would be attracted d to each other and spark a love connection (Williams 949973). Unknowingly to Winnfield family, J m was Laurel’s old high school crush (949973). Nevertheless, Jim and Laura had the chance t 0 rekindle their relationship which brought about the flashbacks for Laura (949973). Laura sat arts to remind Jim of events that happened in high school, all of which Jim couldn’t even remember beer (949973).
The fact that Jim couldn’t remember most of the claims Laura made of her high SC wool memories with him reveals that Laura might have had problems socializing and miserable e years in school because of her disability; hence her high school mates like Jim barely Jackson edged her Bangui 6 existence which strongly might have led to her alienation with the world. Cacao dining Gun Wang, Laurel’s disability increased her solicitousness: She builds her fantasy she builds her own fantasy world with her glassine friends and many old records.
Laura, however, is more than a prisoner of her own deformed consciousness. (Wang) Personally, agree with Mr.. Wang that Laurel’s insecurity and lack of confidence e about her deformity has entrapped her into the fantasy world of her mind, imprisoning her from the reality of the outside world and what it entails like going to college, building a career, meeting new people and even finding love for herself as oppose to relying on her mother t find hear husband. The authors of the three literary works have portrayed the use of thoughts an d reflections to display desires.
Thoughts and reflections were expressed by the characters through flashbacks, fantasies, and holding on to the past; this resulted to the creation of illusionary y worlds by the characters, as oppose to living in reality. In “The Things they Carried,” the maim n character Jimmy fantasized about having a love relationship with his friend Martha, which h led him to lose control and awareness of the reality (war) around him. In “Facing It,” the naira tort held on to the sat and had flashbacks because he desired to reconnect with his lost comma des, leading him to lose count of reality, and started seeing imaginary visions.
Finally in ‘The Glass s Menagerie,” the character Laura underlying desire to be normal led her to seclude herself fro m reality. Bangui 7 Work Cited Page Gardner Janet, et al. Literature: A Portable Anthology . Boston: Bedford SST. Martin’s, 2013. Print. Marvin, Thomas F. “Gunnysack’s Facing It. ” Explicator 61. 4 (2003): 242245. Literary Reference Center . Web. 2 Par. 2013. Smith, Jack. “The Things He Carries: For Tim O’Brien, The Vietnam War Has Re maimed A Crucible In His Fiction, But The Power Of Imagination And Memory, And ‘Our E elusive Interior Worlds,’ Loom Large, Too. Writer 123. 7 (2010): 1647. Literary Reference Center Wang Gun. “The Glass Menagerie. ” Masterpiece II: Juvenile & Young Adult Literature Series, Supplement (1 997): 12. Dietary Reference Center Bangui 8 rows … Were they most desire. In literary works like ‘The Things They Carried,” “The Glass mend Martha. In Bangui 9 thoughts, and their constant struggles to differentiate and keep a balance bet when both worlds led to a creation of two parallel worlds (a world of illusion in contrast to living in r laity). Works have demonstrated struggle between illusion and reality.
Lieutenant Cry joss appeared to be delusional through is thoughts. Several instances were given from the Story, instances where he would escape from war surrounding into his mind, and have fanciful, obsessive e thoughts about Martha. For example, he would often retire his night wondering “if Martha WA s a virgin” (O’brien 344). Other instances where he vividly described Martha from the pick tires: “Her eyes were gray and neutral, her lips slightly open as she stared straighten at the ca mere… Her legs, he Hough, were almost certainly the legs of a virgin, dry and without hair” (O’Brien en 345). There examples were times Lieutenant Cross had thoughts about some of the species al moments he shared with Martha before he departed for the war, like their movie date: “the movie was Bonnie and Clyde, during the final scene he touched her knew… He remembered kiss nag her good night at the dorm door” and how he wish he could have done things differently wit h Martha: “He should’ve carried her up the stairs to her room and tied her to the bed and to ached that left knee all night long’ (O’brien 346). Lieutenant Cross’s delusional fantasies and though TTS even Bangui 10 emphasize his scary obsession with Ms.
Martha. The amount of time Mr.. Cross s spends thinking about Ms. Martha in the story, one would never think he is in a war zone. Lieutenant obsession and delusions towards his desire for Martha as love led to his main struggle of this story – guilt. Mr.. Cross spent most of his time dread mining about a perfect world where he and Martha were intimate, instead of being an effects eve Lieutenant governing his soldiers. It all came crashing for Lieutenant Cross when one of his soldiers under IM Ted Lavender got killed.
The death of Ted Lavender left Lieutenant Cross feeling “shame” and “hat?’ towards himself, feeling guilty that “he had loved Martha more that n his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war (O’brien 353). According to the SST ROR, all Lieutenant Cross could do was “dig” (O’brien 353). Ted was dead, reality and guilt came our shining in, he didn’t have Marsh’s love, “he realized she did not love him and never would” and he blamed himself for everything.