This is the first physical description of Kurtz the reader is given and the clothing that he is wearing seems to be the high point. ... Being able to "help [women] to stay is that beautiful world of their own" (p115) seems to be very important when it comes to being a man. ... Wealth is a way for men to prove to the outside world that "he's a man. ... Marlow tells his listeners about when he was a child and his fascination with maps. ... Many boys want to explore the world and fill their heads with as many stories as possible. ...

• Word Count: 781
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

With our births we are only promised physical death; the grim reaper patiently walks by our side, methodically digging our grave, yet we do not know if he is shoveling out our grave slowly with a teaspoon or rapidly with a backhoe. ... Although he may of thought that he had death all mapped out, he apparently didn't when it came to the end. ... The external world (including our own bodies) on the other hand, is mostly beyond our control; therefore the gods have some control over what happens there. ... Moreover, we are troubled and discontented when we desire something in the external ...

• Word Count: 1165
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

The narrator, Tim O"Brien tells many stories about his war experience and brings the reader into his world of bravery, shame, death, and beauty. Obviously the title evinces that one of the focuses is on what the soldiers carried, which not only covers the physical items but bleeds into the emotional and psychological baggage of the war. ... Jimmy Cross was the leader and in charge of the platoon; therefore, he carried more equipment than others including a compass, code books, maps, and binoculars. ... Everybody's" (O"Brien 176), Jimmy still laid out the letter to send to Kiowa's fa...

• Word Count: 1691
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School