The chapter “Speaking
of Courage” in Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried” surrounds Norman Bowker
and his adjustment back into the American society. Courage is in some ways the
opposite of guilt but in other ways works hand in hand. The things that you
didn’t do that you regret not doing almost always come back to courage. You
didn’t have the courage to do something. Norman Bowker didn’t have the courage
to pull Kiowa out of the mud he was being sucked in to. Tim O’Brien didn’t have
the courage to jump into the rainy river and swim to Canada, but he wishes he
had. He says he wasn’t courageous enough to do it. Courage is a word that we
made up to describe what would happen in the absence of our short comings. In
the book courage doesn’t exist for the individual outside of regret. When
someone does something courageous they never sit back and think “Hey, that was
a pretty great thing I just did there. Go me.” Other people can see someone’s actions as
courageous but mostly because they doubt their own ability in being able to
handle the situation the same way.
In the chapter courage
is also used to mask the absence of courage. Bowker hides a story about his
friend’s death in a story about almost winning a silver star, an award for
bravery. However, the real courageous thing for Norman to do would be to show
his emotional side and openly talk about Kiowa’s death. Instead he hides behind
this false macho front. Norman Bowker didn’t even have the courage to approach
anyone with this story, no matter what sort of front it was hidden behind. He
blamed the fact that he was driving around in a car all day and imagining
conversations on people not wanting to talk to him. But he didn’t try. He never
approached his father or his ex-girlfriend to try to talk to them. And he had
the opportunity at the hamburger joint to share his story but he didn’t.
Courage is a
complicated thing, and I don’t think it means what anyone thinks it does.
