The vignette is essentially a character sketch of Henry Dobbins. O'Brien devotes several of his chapters in The Things They Carried to such character sketches not only to create a vivid story but also to author a portrait of Vietnam that is more personal than political, more realistic than fantastic. From such chapters as "The Dentist" and "Stockings," we get to know the men and their idiosyncrasies, and O'Brien takes us through Vietnam with him rather than just reporting events and names.
In contrast to Curt Lemon, O'Brien's portrait of Henry Dobbins is a positive account of faith and hope. Dobbins is shown to be a strong man because he has faith. O'Brien outlines the many good parts of Dobbins and then complicates that by comparing him to America. Dobbins, O'Brien says, is like America in that both are "big and strong, full of good intentions, a roll of fat jiggling at his belly, slow of foot but always plodding along." The comparison starts well, and begins to wane to the point where we wonder whether O'Brien is criticizing America for being fat and slow or whether he has simply dropped the analogy. O'Brien shows Dobbins to be as the sons of America, exemplifying its great and dubious qualities alike, creating a realistic rather than jingoistic portrait of war and soldiers.
