"The Things They Carried" and "The Woman Warrior"

Paper Summary:

This paper analyzes how the abstract idea that specific facts and events are inconsequential when looking at a theme or idea as a whole is used in the novels, "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien, and "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston. It shows how, through the use of talk story, as in Kingston's novel and the basis of a "true war story" in "The Things they Carried", the respective authors use the idea to portray the true meaning of the work. It looks at how both Kingston and O'Brien use this twist in a story to fully develop the themes portrayed and to get across the true meaning of their stories and what they want the reader to take away from the stories.

From the Paper:

"The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston is a non-fiction story of a Chinese-American girl growing up in California. Throughout the novel Kingston uses the talk stories from her mother to outline what a true woman warrior is and who Maxine's mother expected her to be. The first example of this is the legend of Fa Mu Lan told in the chapter "White Tigers."2 The story tells of the warrior Fa Mu Lan who manages to be everything to everyone, able to satisfy the role of wife and mother while still leading her people to victory in battle. Fa Mu Lan becomes what every Chinese woman wants to become, the powerful warrior that protects her family and the nurturing mother that raises her children."

More papers on "The Things They Carried" and "The Woman Warrior":

• Analytical Essay # 126659 : "'The Things They Carried' and Ambiguity"
• Comparison Essay # 74142 : "'The Things They Carried' and 'Come Together'"
• Book Review # 49025 : "The Things They Carried" and Literary Style"

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