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Henry Dobbins Symbolism

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Something Most People Don't Realize In “Tim O'Brien's novel,” The Things They Carried, each soldier carries something different that makes them feel safe/something memorable, that helps them get through their time away from home. Whether it be stockings,dental floss,a picture, or even tranquilizers. Henry Dobbins for example carries Stockings/Pantyhose. In The Things They Carried, mainly every character carried things to help them get through these days on top of the equipment they had to carry. Jimmy Cross a Lieutenant, carried 2 pictures of a girl back home named Martha who he envisioned growing old with and settling down with, but instead he was out fighting for what had to be done. Kiowa an American Indian soldier was known for carrying …show more content…

The stockings are from his girlfriend/ex girlfriend. Throughout the book Dobbins refers to these stockings as good luck charms because no matter what he never seems to get hurt or even get a scratch on him. Henry says “Breathing in the scent from the pantyhose brings back good memories.Even after his girlfriend broke up with him we see that the stockings are still used as a good luck charm and are still protecting him. Dobbins we learn is a good man but very unsophisticated, he is told to be big, strong, and have good intentions, also we know he is known to be reliable and drawn to sentimentality. Although everyone makes fun of him for carrying the stockings, he tripped over a Bouncing Betty and it did not go off and he went into an Open Firefight put the stockings around his neck and was able to breathe clean …show more content…

Ted was scared of death the slow painful death. He was known for carrying tranquilizers with him wherever he went, incase things got too intense for him. Ted knew going to war could consist of death but that wasn't going to stop him even if he was scared. He just simply brought that one thing that was going to help him get through this and help him face his fear of the slow painful death that usually comes with war stories. Between the emotions,the thoughts of dying, the fear of having to do something they might not agree with, having to stay strong for there others,and keeping hold of there reputation, it all causes a lot of stress on each and every soldier, person out there protecting us.If you ever think about it they carry a whole host of complex feelings, you maybe never even know about because they hide them inside. But not only should you thank each and everyone of them at the end of the day you should remember they too have something on them that's helping them make it through their rough

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The Things They Carried is about Lieutenant Jimmy Cross, the leading officer of a band of soldiers in the Vietnam War. It is written by Tim O’Brien. Jimmy falls in love withe girl named Martha who is back home attending college. He carries a couple of pictures and letters that she has sent. The group comes across a runner and they draw numbers to see who has to go in to check it out.

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“They carried the common secret of cowardice barely restrained, the instinct to run or freeze or hide, and in many respects this was the heaviest burden of all, for it could never be put down, it required perfect balance and perfect posture.” (O’Brien 77) Tim O’Brien clearly demonstrates to the reader that one of the most difficult burdens to bear is being a coward because even though carrying over fifty pounds of equipment is hard on the body physically cowardice is among the worst pain because you can never put that feeling down for even a second to relieve the pain. The novel The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien, intends to show the reader how the platoons soldier’s cowardice and dread can effect them in the form of regret later in

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People all across the world carry a variety of objects and emotions. Specifically, in the novel The Things They Carried by Tim O’ Brien characters carry certain objects that act as coping mechanisms throughout the war. Three characters that dealt with the Vietnam War through the use of objects were Henry Dobbins, Jimmy Cross, and Kiowa. Henry Dobbins is described as being a large bodied man and that is why he is company’s machine gunner. In addition to carrying his machine gun along with the ammo strapped across his chest, he wears his girlfriend’s pantyhose around his neck.

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In the novel The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien expresses to the reader why the men went to the war and continued to fight it. In the first chapter, “The Things They Carried,” O’Brien states “It was not courage, exactly; the object was not valor. Rather they were too frightened to be cowards.” The soldiers went to war not because they were courageous and ready to fight, but because they felt the need to go. They were afraid and coped with their lack of courage by telling stories (to themselves or aloud) and applied humor to the situations they encountered.

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Henry Dobbins carried his girlfriend’s pantyhose around his neck for good luck. Kiowa carried his grandfather’s feathered hatchet and his grandmother’s distrust of the white man. Rat Kiley carried comic books and M&Ms. Norman Bowker carried the thumb of a VC corpse. Ted Lavender was carrying toilet paper and tranquilizers when he was shot and killed.

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The Things They Carried, written by Tim O’Brien, illustrates the experiences of a man and his comrades throughout the war in Vietnam. Tim O’Brien actually served in the war, so he had a phenomenal background when it came to telling the true story about the war. In his novel, Tim O’Brien uses imagery to portray every necessary detail about the war and provide the reader with a true depiction of the war in Vietnam. O’Brien starts out the book by describing everything he and his comrades carry around with them during the war. Immediately once the book starts, so does his use of imagery.

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In one scene O’Brien describes all the things the soldiers have to carry, “The things they carried were… heat tabs, wristwatches, dog tags, mosquito repellent, chewing gum, candy, cigarettes, salt tabs…”(2). All of the things that soldiers are required to carry proves the physical burdens that war created. Many items are required to carry, including big, small, and even heavy things. This caused a lot of pain for the soldiers throughout the war; Soldiers can be emotionally affected by items that they carry throughout the years. Tim returned to the field where Kiowa died to put his items back: “I reached in with the moccasins and wedged them into the soft bottom, letting them slide away,”(178).

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The Things They Carried “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien is a short story set during the Vietnam War. In the story, O’Brien lists many different items soldiers in the Alpha Company carried with them as they humped across the rugged terrain. Many carried necessities such as rations, matches, ammunition and things of that nature; however, many soldiers also carried quite peculiar objects such as condoms, pantyhose, and M&Ms. Readers can grasp a closer insight of the characters’ lives after further examination of the symbolism and meaning of the things they carried.

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Discussing the physical items the soldiers carry along with them, readers are able to determine

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It lists a variety of things that the soldier brought on their mission. For example, some of the things were intangible, such as sickness, guilt, and the atmosphere. Other soldiers were carrying physical objects, including P-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wrist-watches, dog tags and etc. as listed in (O 'Brien). Throughout the plot of the story O 'Brien seem to focus on the things that were not important versus the things that 's were, and at the end, he was faced with a big consequence.

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The things they carried is a novel by Tim O’Brien. About the Vietnam war. About the lives of people going there. It’s a collection of war stories. Some of them true, some of the untrue and that’s the main topic that’ll be discussed in this paper.

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“That’s what stories are for. Stories are for joining the past to the future ... Stories are for eternity, when memory is erased, when there is nothing to remember except the story” (36). The Things They Carried is a captivating novel that gives an inside look at the life of a soldier in the Vietnam War through the personal stories of the author, Tim O’Brien . Having been in the middle of war, O’Brien has personal experiences to back up his opinion about the war.

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999 Words | 4 Pages

The True Weight of War “The Things They Carried,” by Tim O’Brien, brings to light the psychological impact of what soldiers go through during times of war. We learn that the effects of traumatic events weigh heavier on the minds of men than all of the provisions and equipment they shouldered. Wartime truly tests the human body and and mind, to the point where some men return home completely destroyed. Some soldiers have been driven to the point of mentally altering reality in order to survive day to day. An indefinite number of men became numb to the deaths of their comrades, and yet secretly desired to die and bring a conclusion to their misery.

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277 Words | 2 Pages

Thematic Statement: “Stockings”- Being rational under certain situations have an effect on a person’s thinking because it confirms their belief within their reasoning of the events that happened. Symbolism of stockings represent superstition “...,Dobbins felt the pull of superstition, and he believed firmly and absolutely in the protective power of the stockings” (O’Brien,112). It’s Dobbin’s superstition that he believed because the stockings represent a safer world for him away from Vietnam.

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1000 Words | 4 Pages

Tim O 'Brien writes The Things They Carry, which is based on his experience in the vietnam war. O 'Brien utilizes parallel structure in his works. An example is “Henry Dobbins, who was a big man, carried extra rations….head.” It begins with the soldier 's name.

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