Inner Struggles

Inner Struggles

Everyone faces inner struggles in life. Some of these struggles can be minor issues, while others are life changing. These inner battles are usually an obstacle that restricts something, which needs to be accomplished. In order to overcome these inner conflicts, a final decision must be made to achieve a permanent solution. Inner struggles are commonly presented in many stories through their main characters. In Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried” and Courtney Brkic’s short stories “In The Jasmine Shade” and “The Daughter,” each author uses symbolism to reveal ways in which the struggles of war create emotional and psychological conflicts within people.

        Tim O’Brien uses symbolism to reveal the inner struggle Jimmy Crow is facing, In his story, “The Things They Carried,” the author places a major emphasis on the main characters inner conflict. Léon Wurmser says in his article, “Metaphor As Conflict, Conflict As Metaphor,” that “conflict itself entails a spectrum of warlike or violent metaphors, such as defense, antitheses, clashing values or forces, being torn or broken apart, inner part personalities fighting with each other” (107), which is what lieutenant Cross is fighting within himself throughout the story. Cross he must give-up his innocence and desires to adapt to the harsh environment of war. In the story, it is revealed that Lieutenant Crow isn’t fully devoted to the war and often finds himself in his desires daydreaming. In the story, Cross on occasion slips off into daydreams, walking “on the Jersey shore with Martha” (430) distracted and useless. Martha is not just a girl he misses but a symbol of home and innocence, which he wishes to regain.  Cross and his men all carry things with them; some things are of necessity and some things to remind them of home and loved ones in order to cope with war. Cross holds onto pictures of Martha along with a rock given by her from the shore back home. These items only cause him to become more distracted while fueling his desire to make it home. These soldiers not only carried weapons, good luck charms, and memories of home but also “all the emotional baggage of men who might die, Grief, terror, love, longing – these were intangibles, [but] they had tangible weight” (435).These intangibles are the effects of war that these men must overcome in order to focus on their tasks and to survive. Many, in order to combat their fear and grief, hold on to items “because the object might provide some measure of safety or security”(46), which allows them to hold onto what things used to be like and a sense of hope for the future. The objects Cross carries besides his gear, are letters, pictures, and a rock all given to him by Martha who symbolizes home. This story is unique in the fact that it actually tells what soldiers may carry along with them and how much each item weighs. The first weight mentioned in the story is of Cross’s letters weighing a slim “ten ounces” (427).  At first, these letters seem to be a harmless addition to his gear but as the story progresses with all the ounces and pounds shown it is realized that every ounce makes a difference. Cross does not have room for his “ten ounce” letters or what they symbolize. In order to be the leader he needs to be, he must let go of these items and desires. Towards the end of the story, his friend Lavender dies and Cross blames himself since he was caught up in his daydreams instead of paying attention the safety of his men. At this moment, Cross understands that he must make a conscious decision to do away with his desires and be the lieutenant his men deserve. His actions in burning the letters and pictures show that the war has forced a change within him causing him to leave behind his innocence and become a mature leader.

        Correspondingly, “The Things They Carried” and Brkic’s “In The Jasmine Shade” share the aspect that one must overcome an inner struggle to adapt to the circumstances of war. In Brkic’s story she uses symbolism to show the main character Lejla’s feelings of regret and isolation caused by the war. Lejla represents strength as she manages to find hope in order to make it through even in hopeless situations. In the story, Lejla loves her home with “ – the fountain’s carving and the curling green vines [that] now existed solely in pictures, and the images made her eyes burn” (20). The pictures she carried are more than a place as they symbolize what made up a home, the love and support from one’s family. This longing to regain a sense of a home with her family is what helps make Lejla such a pillar of strength and hope. Although she has such great strength, it doesn’t prevent her from feeling guilt caused by the war separating families. Although Lejla is filled with hope and is a pillar of strength, she still has a feeling of guilt. The main character is married to Marko and is pregnant; and, although she knows about the pregnancy, she refuses to inform Marko until she knows the time is “right”. At first, she didn’t want him getting his hopes up if she wasn’t pregnant but when she finally knew for sure the war was at their “front door” and she didn’t want to worry him. Lejla didn’t have a chance to tell him before they were separated, so Lejla made sure to inform her sister. She did this so when she is reunited with Marko, everyone would hopefully believe the child is his. Lejla felt guilty knowing her husband didn’t know about the baby as she began to hear a voice, “he doesn’t even know” (13), so Lejla “covered her belly with her hands, listening to the little voice” (14).  This implies that it could be the voice of her unborn child linking the guilt she has back to her pregnancy, and wishing Marko knew. This constant feeling of guilt and hopelessness, brought on by the war, leads her to feeling secluded. Lejla was surrounded by “complete darkness…tucked away in a windowless, unlit storage room” (10 & 12) “and darkness again covered them” (18). These instances of darkness symbolize her feeling of being alone. Lejla continues to hold onto her desire to be reunited with Marko and to regain their “home” by pulling herself through this dark experience she is feeling. Even after they are reunited, the darkness they once felt still lingers on between them. Their relationship no longer like it once was; now they only hold hands remembering the traumatic events they lived through during the war. Even though she is free from the war she still remains a pillar of strength. She remains hopeful that their relationship will one day be like it once was: “this is how we reach each other…through kilometers of tainted air” (21). Even if it is a long and difficult journey Lejla is willing to do anything to regain what the war had taken from them –home. The war not only took away their home but left an emotional tension preventing them from opening themselves up to anyone. This is what must be overcome in order for Lejla and Marko to regain their lives.