The idea of ​​love is very complex and can be interpreted in various ways. “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien and “Araby” by James Joyce depict the lives of two individuals in love. “The Things They Carried” is about a young lieutenant named Jimmy Cross during the Vietnam War. Lieutenant Cross was unable to concentrate on the war because of his constant thoughts of the girl he loved, Martha. “Araby” is about a boy in love with a girl he has never had a conversation with. Although the two protagonists of "The Things They Carried" and "Araby" eventually realized that the girls they loved didn't feel the same way about them, Lieutenant Cross tried to move forward by destroying everything who reminded him of Martha, while Lieutenant Cross tried to move on by destroying everything that reminded him of Martha. The boy from “Araby” was disappointed. To begin with, Lt. Cross and the boy from "Araby" showed a certain level of immaturity in acting the way they did towards the girls they liked. In "The Things They Carried", Cross touched Martha's left knee while they were watching a movie. He thought about that moment constantly and was completely obsessed. Her obsession is evident in their story when she says, “In that moment,” he thought, “he should have done something courageous.” He should have carried her up the stairs to her room, tied her to the bed, and touched her left knee all night” (O’Brien 936). Misinterpreting such a simple gesture and turning it into a sexual fantasy shows immaturity. In "Araby", the boy also created a situation that was bigger than it actually was. When he finally spoke to the girl he was obsessed with, he took the conversation badly. She explained to him that she could not attend the bazaar because she had to go to a retreat. He replied, “If I go, I... middle of paper... misinterpret his infatuation with the girl and he remains disappointed and unsatisfied. In conclusion, both stories present the idea of ​​love and how it can be interpreted. In "The Things They Carried", Lieutenant Cross fantasizes about a girl named Martha, whom he loves but who does not feel the same way about him. He has difficulty concentrating on his duties during the war because he constantly thinks about her. When he realizes that she doesn't love him the way he loves her, he destroys everything he has of her. In “Araby”, a young boy falls in love with a girl he has never spoken to. He doesn't know if he'll ever talk to her, and when he finally does, he's so excited that he misinterprets the conversation. When his plan to get her to love him back doesn't go as planned, he doesn't try to move on like Lt. Cross, but he is disappointed..