While watching Stand By Me directed by Rob Reiner, I noticed how much of an impact Gordie's brother had on him. Not only was Gordie outshone when his brother was alive, but after his death Gordie was basically ignored by his parents. Anyone's life will change when a sibling dies, but Gordie's biggest inspiration and his biggest supporter was his brother Dennis.
Gordie said in the beginning of the movie that the summer after his brother died was the summer he was ignored by his parents. And there is a scene near the end of the movie showing one of Gordie's dreams in which him and his family are at Dennis's funeral. As the casket is being lowered, Gordie's father says, "It should have been you, Gordon." Gordie acknowledges in the movie that his brother was the pride of the family, being a star football player and popular, both of which Gordie isn't. So naturally, although he loves his brother, he feels as though his parents love his brother a lot more than they love him. I think that Gordie sometimes agrees with his father in the nightmare, thinking that he should have been the one dead. He probably thought that his parents wouldn't miss him at all, and family life would carry on like normal. Gordie is carrying shame and guilt after Dennis's death, thinking that he should be the one buried in a coffin.
Dennis was also the one who supported Gordie the most. His dad was furious at Gordie for writing, an activity he thought was more suited to girls, and not doing football like Dennis.In one memory, Gordie remembers his brother announcing that Gordie had written a really good story. His father gets mad, telling Dennis that he has to focus on football,not Gordie's stories. Gordie's mom seems interested, but doesn't pay much attention to it. After their dad tells them not to focus on anything but football, Dennis whispers to Gordie, "Gordie, I really liked it. I thought it was great." He cares about Gordie's feeling, and supports him no matter what. When Denny dies, Goride doesn't have anyone to support him except for his friends, but he trusted his brother's opinion more than anyone else's. Now, he feels worthless, and even though all of his friends, especially Chris, support him and encourage him, he still doesn't think that he will ever become anything. Denny left Gordie alone, or at least that is what it feels like to Gordie.
This is why when the Yankees baseball cap Denny gave to Gordie before he died was stolen from him, Gordie is depressed and wants to go back and get it immediately, unlike Chris, who wants to leave it and steal it back later. I think that Gordie is a lot sadder about that than he shows, considering how much the cap meant to him. It was the last thing Denny gave to Gordie before he died, and it was one of his most important possessions. The memory of the cap being given to him was a good one for Gordie, and he wants to hold on to it. So when it's stolen, it's like the last piece of dennis is taken away from him, too. This means a lot to Gordie, and he probably feels ashamed that he couldn't hold onto the last thing his brother had trusted him with.
Gordie was probably the most deeply affected in his family when Denny died. His parents ignored him, and this made him feel worthless. Any sibling death will be extremely difficult to cope with, but for Gordie, being the 'unwanted' brother, it was especially bad. Denny left too many things behind that needed to be dealt with, and he was the one holding the family together, or so it felt to Gordie.
I almost forgot about his hat being stolen, and I don't remember him getting it back. It's a shame that he lost a cherished memory of his brother because of a stupid piece of cloth.
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