After he burned Martha’s letters and photographs
, he was changed. O’Brien said that, “He was now determined to perform his duties firmly and without negligence” (O’Brien 110). Jimmy Cross finally comported himself as a soldier. At the end of the story, O’Brien tells about Jimmy Cross again.
How has Jimmy Cross changed by the end of the story or to put it another way what has he lost and what has he gained?
Going to War
As an undergraduate,
Cross had signed up for Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) as a way to pick up a few extra credits in college
. Because of this decision, he is placed in a position of leadership in Vietnam. Nonetheless, Jimmy Cross is ill-equipped to lead.
What happens to Jimmy Cross in The Things They Carried?
When the
Song Tra Bong River floods during the night, the field becomes a bog. Kiowa is killed that night, and his body is sucked into the field
.
In what ways is Jimmy Cross a dynamic character?
Jimmy Cross- Lieutenant Cross is the leader of the Alpha Company. Cross is a dynamic character
because he realizes, after Ted Lavender dies, that Martha doesn’t love him and stops staring at her picture
. He starts forcing his men to follow protocol and looking out for them better.
Is Lieutenant Jimmy Cross dynamic?
Jimmy Cross is the First Lieutenant who carries “the responsibility for the lives of his men” (O’Brien 429). …
Jimmy Cross is round and dynamic
. He has the most responsibility in “The Things They Carried.” He carries the lives of his men and his love for Martha (429). He changes when Lavender is killed.
Why did Jimmy Cross burn Martha’s letters?
After Ted Lavender is killed,
Cross feels deeply guilty that he was not able to protect him
, and burns Martha’s letters and photo as way of trying to apologize and make things right. … She died just a few months later, of cancer.
What did Jimmy Cross carry emotionally?
What did Jimmy Cross carry emotionally? Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, of the Alpha Company, carries various reminders of his love for Martha, a girl from his college in New Jersey who has given no indication of returning his love. Cross carries
her letters in his backpack and her good-luck pebble in his mouth
.
Why is Jimmy Cross obsessed Martha?
Though he realizes that she does not love him, he is obsessed with Martha
because she symbolizes the innocence of life before the war
. Lieutenant Jimmy Cross was deeply in love with the image of a girl back home, Martha. All through his tour, he thought of Martha.
What did Henry Dobbins carry emotionally?
Each man’s physical burden underscores his emotional burden. Henry Dobbins, for example, carries
his girlfriend’s pantyhose
and, with them, the longing for love and comfort. Similarly, Jimmy Cross carries compasses and maps and, with them, the responsibility for the men in his charge.
Why does Tim call the Vietnam War boring?
What does O’Brien mean when he says the war was “aggressively boring”? … In 1968, what were Tim’s feelings about the Vietnam War?
He felt that it was wrong for “certain blood to be shed for uncertain reasons
.” He hated the war. Explain the “moral split” O’Brien experienced while awaiting his draft notice.
Why does LT cross blame himself for Lavender’s death?
Lieutenant Jimmy Cross blames himself for Ted Lavender’s death
because he loves Martha so much that he’s been preoccupied
. They burn Than Khe. Kiowa keeps describing the way Lavender fell when he died. … He has been thinking of her long before Lavender died.
What do we learn about Lieutenant Jimmy Cross?
Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is the main character of the title story. Cross is
a young soldier, drafted like many others, and committed to the war effort and getting his men out alive
. He is not emotionally or patriotically committed, instead simply seeing the war as his assigned job to which he gives his best effort.
Does Jimmy Cross hate Martha?
However, after Lavender’s death,
Jimmy Cross decides that Martha does not love him and that he only loves her in a hateful way
. He also doubts her virginity. As his faith in what is good has been destroyed, he burns her letters in an act of expressing his doubt and cynicism about the world.
Does Jimmy actually love Martha?
Jimmy is in love with Martha
. Being in love with her gives him something to hold on to. It gives him hope to get through the war. … Jimmy felt like his death was because he loved Martha so much and he could not stop thinking about her while Ted was in the platoon.
Is Jimmy Cross in love with Martha?
Cross tells O’Brien that he still loves Martha
. But for the rest of his visit with O’Brien, he doesn’t speak of her. … He urges O’Brien to paint him as a brave and good leader.
What does LT Jimmy Cross carry in his mouth?
Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, of the Alpha Company, carries various reminders of his love for Martha, a girl from his college in New Jersey who has given no indication of returning his love. Cross carries her letters in his backpack and
her good-luck pebble
in his mouth.
