Everybody Hurts
...wind” (199). The image of a dark and gloomy autumn day instantly appears in the reader’s mind as Stegner sets the tone for Henry’s emotional state for the rest of the story. Describing the bar as “cavelike [...] that smell compounded of steam heat and cue-chalk dust, of sodden butts in cuspidors, of coffee and meat and beer smells from the counter, of cigarette smoke so unaired that it darkened the walls” (200), Stegner takes you right in the middle of the bar as one of its patrons, a mug in one hand and a cigarette in the other, as smoke saturates the air and lingers, forcing you to squint as it stings your eyes. After an agonizing night that tortures Henry with thoughts of rage and hate for his father, he comes to the decision that he is finally going to leave and tell his father what he really thinks of his carrying on as if his mother never existed. This time, the sun has come up after a rain and seemed very bright to Henry as the setting once again relays his mood. Stegner describes how “Henry noticed the excessive brightness and could not tell whether it was really as it seemed, or whether his plunge out of the dark and isolated hole of his life had restored a lost capacity to see” (208). Providing the reader with a vivid picture of Henry’s surroundings and effectively linking the climate to his feelings, Stegner paints a clear picture of Henry’s torture and his perception of how his life has turned upside-down. As important as setting was in conveying Henry’s moods, Stegner uses characterization to explain what drove John and Henry to behave the way they did. Being from the Midwest, Stegner perhaps molds the characters after the typical fathers and sons he has come to know throughout his years. This works for the story because it provides the obstacle that John and Henry face; the inability to communicate their feelings leads to Henry's bitterness towards his father. Stegner molds John in the stereotypical father image. As the father, John has to be strong for his son and tries to show him how to handle tragedy the only way he knew how: by working. He keeps himself distracted by spending all his time in the bar, reverting back to the lifestyle he was accustomed to before he got married. He even went as far as taking on a lady friend, for too much time alone could bring up old memories and feelings that could cause him to break down. The lifestyle was familiar to him and was something he could fall back on in his time of uncertainty. On the other hand, Henry does not realize his father’s pain for he is struggling with his own pain. He interprets his father’s actions as someone who has just been paroled after serving a few years in prison. In the span of six weeks, Henry sees his father sell their house, buy the bar, and live the lifestyle his mother worked so hard to keep him away from. He also starts dating one of the bar regulars, who from her strong perfume, leads Henry to conclude, “the sow must slop it on by the cupful” (206). The roles John and Henry play as father and son inhibits them both from revealing their true feelings to each other. Seeing himself as the rock, John feels he has to show Henry a strong front. Meanwhile, Henry hides his contempt for his father, while constantly determined to impress him, the way sons look for their fathers’ approval. Another element Stegner employs successfully throughout the story is symbolism. He brings them out subtly, forcing the reader to almost reread a passage to spot the symbolism. Using Billy Hammond as more than just a character, Stegner describes Billy as “a mild, gentle, golden-haired boy who looked as if he ought to be in some prep school […] instead of clerking in a girlie hotel” (203). He seems so out of place hanging out in the bar with John and his cronies, leading Henry to think of him as a “polite soft gentle boy lost and wandering among pimps and prostitutes, burying himself […] among people who never even touched his surface” (214). To Henry, Billy represents his idea of the perfect life; the one he had before his mother died, and the life he longs to regain. In sharp contrast, Stegner ...