Henry Dobbins Character in The Things They Carried Essay

Stockings Henry Dobbins

Although sophistication was not his strong suit, Henry Dobbins is an independent man full of good intentions. Dobbins is also a believer in the virtues of simplicity and directness and hard labor. Although everyone made fun of him, he loved to wear his girlfriends stockings for good luck. Her stockings kept him safe and without them his day would go down the drain. But then, near the end of the year his girlfriend broke up with him. Henry was in disbelief for a while but then he picked up the stockings and said to himself, No matter what the magic does not go away (OBrien 112). Dobbins still believed in those stockings, even with a different meaning behind them this time. Henry Dobbins belief in the stockings stays strong even after his break-up with his girlfriend. The stockings protect and guide him up until the break-up. Afterwards he leaned towards the stockings for comfort and stability.

Coping with the war is a constant struggle. Dobbins had many people depending on him, such as his family, friends, and war mates. His main coping mechanism is the stockings. They make him think of happier times. They take him spiritually to a place of intimacy and safety. He buries his face into the stockings when he was at the war. He would smell them to take him into his safety zone. They are his body armor. They became a part of his uniform. The stockings are a safety net from the war. He thought that they stopped bad things from happening to him. It is not the fact that they are from his girlfriend, it is the fact that he thinks he has something to come home to just like everyone else in the war.

Henrys aspect of the stockings would be much different than those who wear them for fashion or even just to keep them warm in the winter. The stockings exemplify protection and guidance, and then later on comfort and stability. Not only does it show that, but it also emphasizes that this is nothing but superstition. The stockings to most are just accessories or undergarments for people but to Dobbins they remind him of his girlfriend and of a safer world apart from the war. The stockings also motivate Dobbins when good things turn bad or even when something does not go as planned. Those stockings were like his protection through anything. Even after his girlfriend broke up with him, he looks into the stockings as if they are still a source of comfort. Henry basically orders his experience by superstition rather than by rationality.

With Henry Dobbins being such a superb soldier and hardworking man, no one would expect for him to have to lean towards a girls clothing for protection. His motivation and directness would make him seem as if he were a man of honor and courage. Henry Dobbins leaned towards his stockings for stability after his girlfriend broke up with him, whereas, most people lean toward a human figure. Henry faithfully brought those stockings with him wherever he went. They gave him protection from the war and helped him cope with being away from his family and friends, even his girlfriend. Although his girlfriend dumped him, Dobbins continued to believe in the stockings with no regret. Most people would burn the remains after being dumped or throw them away but Dobbins felt that the stockings had more meaning to it. Not only were the stockings a charm from his girlfriend, but also a token of good luck.

Why would most people make up fake images in their mind? Why would they hold on to certain things to cope with problems? Those are questions that most people would like to ask Henry Dobbins. Henrys whole aspect of the stockings was a cover up for how he really felt about the war and being away from his loved ones. Dobbins is like most people who hold on to particular items just to cope with a certain situation. The stockings to Dobbins is like having someone close to you be on your side and guide you through any struggles that you come across. Without the stockings, for Dobbins, it is being like a person without lungs. Those stockings give Henry a barrier to lean up against or always depend on. He has planted this mindset of always depending upon the stockings, so without them any possible thing could go wrong. However, Henry Dobbins believes in those stockings no matter the circumstance because in his mind all things are possible and accomplished with them. No sweat, he said. The magic doesnt go away. (OBrien 118). That statement is one of many that show the true meaning of belief and acceptance.

Toughness is something that is mental. Sometimes it can be a covered up from the world and from other people. The article Shyness and Toughness: Unique and Moderated Relations With Mens Emotional Inexpression shows that By definition toughness, in contrast to status and antifeminity, should be particularly relevant to emotional inexpression because of its emphasis on the importance of appearing to be mentally, emotionally, and physically strong. Because expression of ones feelings may be associated with the disclosure of personal weakness and shortcomings, mean who adhere to a norm of toughness presumably should inhibit their emotional expression to appear more confident and self-reliant. This is saying most men find it hard to express their feelings, so they hide it with toughness. People think of him as a tough guy but he is really hiding his true feelings of fear behind the stockings.

Henry Dobbins trusted his stockings through any circumstance and or obstacle that he came across. The stockings never let him down or steered him in the wrong direction. Even after him and his girlfriend grew apart, the stockings still played a special role in his life. He did not give up on the stockings and neither did the stockings give up on him.