“Bring in a girl. I mean, what’s the problem?” (O’Brien 93): The role of women in “The Things They Carried” and “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong.”

The presence of women in Vietnam, whether imaginary or physical, was arguably disturbing for the American soldiers. This is demonstrated through Jimmy Cross’s inability to focus on the war without thinking about Martha in “The Things They Carried.” Cross believed that, “He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war.” (16) The love that Cross carried for Martha weighed him down, he could not concentrate on the war and his duties because she clouded his thoughts. Owing to this, Cross blamed himself for Lavender’s death. It appears there is no space for romantic love in the Vietnam War, it distracts soldiers such as Cross and these lovesick soldiers are more likely to make errors of judgment.

Moreover, Tim O’Brien’s stories about women’s involvement in the war are generally negative. In addition to the distraction of Martha, which led to the death of Lavender, Mary Anne Bell brings chaos to the lives of the soldiers in “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong.” This innocent and naïve female figure allegedly arrived in the jungle looking “perky and fresh-faced, like a cheerleader visiting the opposite team’s locker room.” (96) Mary Anne initially increases the moral of the men, who were entertained by her “bubbly personality.” (95) However, after spending too much time in the jungle, she transformed into her perception of a native. Rather than working productively with her boyfriend and his comrades, Mary Anne would disappear, leave Fossie heartbroken, and wear a necklace made of human tongues. In some respects, “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” could be seen as a feminist story, as it illustrates the progression of a young girl with limited prospects and a lack of worldly knowledge, to a strong, skilled, independent woman. Nonetheless, Mary Anne does not become a war heroine:

She had crossed to the other side. She was part of the land. She was wearing her culottes, her pink sweater, and a necklace of human tongues. She was dangerous. She was ready for the kill. (116)

Mary Anne is representative of some of the positive and negative effects war can have on a person. She benefitted from going to Vietnam in learning important life skills; such as medicine and conversation in a second language, she matured immensely and said that she had never been happier. On the other hand, the war made her lose part of herself; the rational, sensible, caring side to her vanished and she became almost an evil character. Unlike the men who were drafted, Mary Anne chose to go to war; she chose the lifestyle of killing and the possibility of being killed and took it to the extreme. This informs the reader that she may be less emotional than the other characters and arguably less human.