Behind the eyes of every war hero lies the soulless connection to humanity, physically present but emotionally disconnected from the world. Behind every war hero are years of incurable trauma and years of unnoticed suffering. Their silent and desperate cries for help are constantly unheard by ordinary people. Tone plays an important role in war stories and in The Things They Carried, O'Brien shows the emotional connection between soldiers such as their love, bond, friendship, etc. In the book The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien describes the war stories, which describe the effects it had on one's mentality. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The novel uses tone to describe what each soldier experienced and the meaning of what they brought using a tone that is sympathetic, somber, etc., to help the readers understand and connect emotionally to the soldiers, understanding the their emotions. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien depicts the Vietnam War and the hardships the soldiers went through. War stories often have a different tone than other books, the author must be distant but also emotionally close enough to evoke raw emotions in readers. Adversity is an experience that every human being encounters at least once or twice in their life, and in The Things they Carried soldiers face their greatest adversity, war. O'Brien writes the stories of characters such as Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, Kiowa, Norman Bowker, etc. to explain what they experienced and the meaning of what they brought with them. O'Brien's tone towards the war is non-judgmental towards any situation, but is also apathetic towards what his comrades have gone through. Story of O'Brien Street with Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, his tone in describing the story of Lieutenant Cross is dark, nostalgic and empathetic. Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is a man of integrity that begins to wane throughout his journey as his love for Martha takes over his mind. In addition to the ammunition cross he also carried with him Martha's letters which were very dear to him. The letter indicates the contrast between Jimmy's two worlds, life with war and life without. He does not connect the two and uses his life with Martha as an escape from the war, resisting his duties and withdrawing from Vietnam, which results in the deaths of several of his comrades. Kiowa was a Native American who tried to do things with compassion and kindness. Kiowa carried a Bible with her which showed her religious value and connection to home as her father was a preacher. His Bible also reveals the underlying message of Native conformity. Norman Bowker was a relatively gentle soldier throughout the war, and his death at the end of the novel reveals the struggles and pressures of war veterans. Norman Bowker kept a diary that is significant as it shows how he handled his feelings. When writing the Kiowa and Norman Bowker stories, O'Brien's tone was different than in the other chapters. O'Brien's tone was one of guilt when it concerned Kiowa and Norman Bowker. Guilt for failing to save his best friend Kiowa and for having written the best description of Norman Bowker's story before his death. Although O'Brien felt guilty, his tone also expressed emotions of empathy, understanding, and nonjudgment. He understood Norman Bowker and his actions on a rainy day. The human brain has the ability to imagine anything it wants, which helps us step out of unwanted reality and into one… one. Imagination helps deal with reality, but for traumatized soldiers.