Answer:
A. The peaceful town and the violence of Vietnam.
Step-by-step explanation:
Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried" is a general reflection on the burdens we all carry, irrespective of our lives. The novel contains a number of linked short stories about military men and their lives before and after the war.
In the chapter "Speaking of Courage", O'Brien juxtaposes the calm, serene and peaceful town of Iowa to that of the violence in Vietnam during the war. Juxtaposing is the act of putting contrasting things together, side by side. And O'Brien does that through Norman Bowker in his reflection of the war days to the present, drowsy summer day in Iowa, while cruising through the town.
Thus, the correct answer is option A.