ENGL 4310

(Backtracking a little bit here...) One thing that struck me as I read "Noon Wine" was the fact that when Mr. Thompson first encounters Mr. Helton, he seems to view him as some kind of exotic species from North Dakota that is so unlike himself. Mr. Helton has the simple request to work for Mr. Thompson, and we see that Mr. Thompson is anything but simple. He is "hearty and jovial" (224) and he begins to "laugh and shout his way through the deal" (224). It seems to me that nearly all of Mr. Thompson's actions are exaggerated whereas Mr. Helton maintains his serious simplicity. We are not treated to a glimpse of what Mr. Helton's impressions of Mr. Thompson are, but I would imagine they would be similar to Mr. Thompson's impression of Mr. Hatch, well, at least in the beginning.

When the stranger, Mr. Hatch, comes to Mr. Thompson's small farm, he immediately makes Mr. Thompson feel uncomfortable. If we contrast this encounter with the encounter between Mr. Helton and Mr. Thompson, we see that the roles are reversed; Mr. Thompson becomes the quiet, serious one, while Mr. Hatch is the one exhibiting exaggerated displays of emotion. Mr. Thompson immediately becomes quiet as soon as the man begins speaking to him because he was "so taken aback by the free manner of the stranger" (243). Mr. Hatch "haw haw(s)" and "roar(s) with joy" (243) which is clearly an echo of Mr. Thompson's braying and "haw haw(ing)" (224) in his first meeting with Mr. Helton. I'm still not entirely sure what to do with this, but the parallels here are undeniable. Perhaps Mr. Thompson is becoming more and more like Mr. Helton and he is, in reality, just as crazy as Mr. Helton. Mr. Helton was a murderer, and Mr. Thompson also becomes a murderer. He cannot clearly recall the events of that afternoon, but continues to claim it was all in defense of Mr. Helton. However, no such wounds were found in Mr. Helton's body, so that could suggest that much of the incident was created in Mr. Thompson's mind. I think his desperate attempts to convince the neighbors of his innocence is his method of convincing himself. Unfortunately, he is unsuccessful and cannot live with knowledge that perhaps he, too, is crazy.