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Although many different lenses can be applied, Tim O'Brien challenges typical gender roles in 'The Things They Carried' through his distinctive portrayal of men's masculinity mixing with traits and of women's involuntary lack of expertise resulting in an absence of understanding. Men are seen to be less manly whereas women turn rock hard, while also men are the opposite of what they seem to be.
Soldiers are always portrayed as tough, hard, and down to earth, meanwhile in reality it seems to be the opposite out in the battlefield. Tim O'Brien displays this to readers right away in the short story of The Things They Carried showing what each person in the company carried with them; spiritually, mentally, and physically. For example, in the story, First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross would “carry letters from a girl named Martha.” (1) Cross was in love with this girl from back home and would carry letters (even though they weren’t love letters) to remind him of her and would “imagine romantic camping trips into the White Mountains in New Hampshire.” He was so crazy for this girl that he would sometimes lick the flaps on the envelope because he knew that she had licked it also. Most men are not ever portrayed like this and are looked down upon if they ever show any sort of “softness.” O’Brien undermines the fact that men are not as hard or strong as they are seen to be in the world. Men are human. While some feelings are more or less crazy, Cross provides a perfect example that not every man is hard.
While men aren’t always seen as the tough guys, women are not always looked upon as tough, but as softer and being more empathetic. Another short story in The Things They Carried called Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong, shows the change or coming out of what some women are on the inside. While hanging around camp in the medical area, the company brings up the idea of how easy it would be to bring in a girl because there are not any officers or people in charge around. Everyone brushes the idea off, but one guy named Mark Fossie would not drop the idea and did some work which eventually led to him bringing his sweet and innocent girlfriend Mary Anne to the camp. She was a joy to have around and created a sense of happiness around the camp with her presence, but she was curious causing her to go off the deep end when she started going off with the Green Berets on their combat missions. She is so changed that a once sweet, friendly, and smart girl turned into a rough and tough girl who stopped seeing the good things in life. She was found wearing a “necklace of human tongues.” (105) She then goes on to say that she is not in over her head while also saying that she wanted to “eat this country…” Saying this, she implied that she loved being out in the combat zones fighting and killing. She liked the idea of being out there and being able to take someone’s life. This undermines the norm that these women are all caring, sweet people that would not hurt a butterfly. When someone likes being out in the combat area, living with the “Greenies,” with a “Build Your Own Gook!! Free Sample Kit!!” (105) there is something that shows that not everyone woman can be this person that will always be this nice and caring person.
Similarly to Mary Anne, Elroy Berdahl represents any other aspect of the male ideal. Though nearly always “a silent, watchful presence,” Elroy serves as information to Tim O’Brien, who admittedly views him as a hero who “saved” (46) his life. He embodies knowledge and diligence taking full gain of the cost of time and silence. With few phrases and actions, Elroy is in a position to immediately O’Brien to get to the bottom of his ethical responsibility to attend a war. Miraculously, he succeeds without a whole lot as mentioning combat or O’Brien’s obvious issue “as if he already knew” (58), suggesting he encompasses the omniscient masculine ideal. The special way in which Mary Anne and Elroy disappear near the quit of every short story further establishes their characters’ identities. While Mary Anne’s exit derives confusion and drama, Elroy’s is simple and painless. This suggests that Mary Anne’s masculinity is introduced through her loud and chaotic actions, whereas Elroy’s is via his quiet sagacity.
Men and women are undermined totally in The Things They Carried by how everyone is not always who they say they are or who they turn out. O’Brien shows that men are not always shown as the rock-hard men designed to kill with Jimmy Cross being totally in love with a girl who probably does not love him back. Women are also shown to not always be seen as soft and sweet people but can become hard and violent people who live to kill.
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