Loyalty is a scarce commodity for Ree Dolly. Ree certainly has plenty of loyalty to her two young brothers and her medicated mother. Many members of the community/family Ree is a part of also tend to preach loyalty to the group. However, when Ree needs that loyalty the most, it seems to work against her. However, in the end one of the most hardened family members, Teardrop, Ree's Uncle, is the one who extends a hand of loyalty and compassion first, and a few others seem to follow, even if less so.
When the reader first meets Teardrop, he is firmly against Ree pursuing any information on the whereabouts of her father. The first line he speaks is in response to Ree telling his wife Victoria that Ree plans to find her father, to which he responds, "You ought not do that... Don't go running after Jessup" (Woodrell 23). Teardrop states his opinion bluntly and clearly, he does not want Ree looking for any information about her father. Ree attempts to convince him, but in the end Teardrop just gives Ree some money in hopes of alleviating some of the issues and tells her to leave. Ree goes on her search anyways, however, and finds little help. She asks around in Hawkfall for information, and specifically she tries to ask Thump Milton if he knows anything, but she is ultimately turned away by his wife until later in the book. When Ree returns to try and converse again, she is met with immediate hostility and is severely beaten by Merab (Mrs.Thump) and her sisters. After blacking out and coming back to consciousness, Ree overhears someone say, "She's crazy to've come here" (Woodrell 131). So, even after all this time, very little loyalty to family is being shown to Ree, and Ree is even called crazy for trying to get some answers about where her father is. This changes, even slightly, however, when Teardrop comes to collect her after the beating. Thump Milton asks Teardrop if he is willing to vouch for Ree, and Teardrop responds with, "If she does wrong, you can put it on me ... This is a girl who ain't goin' to tell nobody nothin'" (Woodrell 137). This is the first bit of loyalty shown from a family member to Ree while attempting to find answers about her father. And this show of loyalty has affects seen by many in the family. Immediately after being taken home by Teardrop, Ree starts to feel the affects this grand show of loyalty has. Family members and others who live near Ree all start to come and visit to see what happened, all remarking that what has happened to Ree is no way to treat a girl in their community. They also come to provide as much help as they can in forms of pills that help Ree stave off the pain and make a fairly swift recovery. After said recovery, or certainly in the end of it, Ree sees the ultimate affects of the loyalty Teardrop shows her when Merab and her sisters show up at Ree's doorstep, saying they will take her to her dad's bones. When asked why Ree should trust them, they simply say, "We need to put a stop to all this upset talk about us we've been havin' to hear" (Woodrell 180). Merab and her sisters finally giving in to show Ree to her father's remains show just how powerful loyalty can be. Even when one family member shows a small bit of loyalty to Ree, the ripples are seen through the whole family. Ree's once impossible task that she gets severley beaten over quickly becomes not just possible, but done. Teardrop's loyalty is what eventually solves Ree's problem.
Daniel Udelhoven
Emma Dabelko: I both agree and disagree with the description of Uncle Teardrop's delayed loyalty as the solution to Ree's problems. His show of support after she is beaten up by Merab and her sisters is certainly a turning point of the novel, as she finally has an adult with significant power backing her up (Woodrell 137). His choice to "stand for her" permits Ree to leave the barn without any more unknown consequences from Thump Milton and his family (Woodrell 137). Without his loyalty and declaration of support, it is completely possible Thump Milton's family would come after her even once she returned home. However, his loyalty allows her to recover and avoid further repercussions in the following days.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that Uncle Teardrop's show of support creates outcomes that could not have otherwise arisen, I do not feel it is the sole solution to her problems and reason behind her eventual success, but rather her persistence, strength and confidence. Ree's boldness produced various issues, putting her in danger and leading to multiple instances of abuse (Woodrell 26, 73, 111, 129). Without these actions, however, she would simply resign herself, her brothers, and her mother to the fate of losing their home and ancestral land. Ree's personality is what allows her to tackle this problem and succeed in gaining a better outcome.