The novel The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien is an assortment of stories about the truth of war and what it can teach us. O'Brien uses the shift in perspective to give us the opportunity to better grasp these experiences not only through his eyes, but also through his companions. In The Things They Carried many stories share a common theme of shame, truth and guilt. O'Brien uses these common threads to show the meaning of the experience of war and how it changed the soldiers. According to O'Brien there are several meanings of the word courage. Does courage represent what you believe in and risk ridicule, or is it the courage to put aside your values ​​and do what you are expected to do? We can see this internal dilemma when O'brien is hit with a draft warning and is expected to rush into a war he doesn't believe in. He is torn and his conscience told him to run, but in the end what came of it? it was a sense of shame." (page number) The war not only challenges O'brien's values, but also challenges most of those who took part in it. During the Vietnam War, people watch as they send their troops overseas for a reason they're not entirely sure of. Finally they could trust not only themselves but also the government that represented them. This belief that you had to be brave and avoid shame was what everyone thought. In the story we could see that everyone had to put up this facade where they were brave enough to be there even if they didn't want to, this was evident when Curt Lemon asked the dentist to "[pull] a perfectly intact tooth" (page) These soldiers they thought they had to prove themselves to each other when in reality they didn't have to. They all knew that none of them really had the guts to do what they wanted, that's... half the story... well. It can be easy to blame yourself because it can be difficult to look at the "what ifs"; these men were certain that they were directly responsible for these deaths and that it will be a burden they will have to carry with their lives or make peace with it. In conclusion, through the authors' underlying messages within the stories, readers are able to grasp the feeling that the war has left in these soldiers. The war not only tested their morals, but left them with a sense of shame and guilt. O'brien was able to capture their raw emotions by shifting perspectives in the novel, capturing the point of view of his companions and emphasizing the importance of truth. I feel like it introduced us to the truth of the emotions behind the war instead of the truth of the actual history, it had a bigger impact on me and I feel about the war and sympathize with the veterans.