Daniel Woodrell's Winter's Bone is a surprising tale of love, humanity, and familial ties in the midst of extreme hardship. As Ree Dolly endeavors to hold her family together in an impoverished Ozark valley, she searches for unconditional love to sustain herself. Despite the absence of love in traditional relationships and roles, Ree emphasizes the importance of the human need of support when she finds unconditional love through her relationship with Gail.
The concept of love in Winter's Bone is one fraught with issues and trauma. In the traditional, husband-and-wife relationships Ree observes, such as those between her mother and father and Gail and Floyd, issues of adultery, violence, absence, and resentment are at the forefront instead of unconditional support and partnership. These negative qualities and examples in Ree's life cause her to shun the concept of marriage and traditional love. Floyd remarks to Ree of his loveless marriage, "'You think you get it but you don't. I mean, you oughta try it your own self sometime. Get drunk one night and wind up married to somebody you don't hardly know'" (36). To Floyd and to this kind of life, Ree says "'No thanks'" (37); however, she fulfills the human need for support through her relationship with Gail. With no other significant figure to which they can turn for aid and care, the female friendship between Ree and Gail transcends traditional roles. They serve as emotional and even romantic partners to each other and are each other's sole confidants and consistent supports throughout the novel, something which allows them to cope with the hardships of each of their broken households. In a community severely lacking consistency and stability, Woodrell writes, "Gail and Ree had been tight since the second-grade field trip when they'd bumped heads" (31). While Ree remains a self-sufficient character in the novel, her moments of reprieve in the struggle to survive come when she listens to the voice of Gail, as Woodrell writes that her "feelings could stray from now and drift to so many spots of time in her senses when listening to that voice, the perfect slight lisp, the wet tone, that soothing hillfolk drawl" (82). With this unconditional love from Gail, Ree's basic human need for support is filled enough for her to embark on the journey to find her father and give unconditional support of her own as the caretaker for her brothers, proving that true love, in any form, can be enough to bear hardship.
You brought up a really excellent point in that among all the negative examples of love and relationship's for Ree, Gail provides the natural connection and comfort that is so significant. It's hard for Ree to allow herself to become emotionally attached to anybody, which is why she remains untroubled when Gail returns to Floyd. Ree obviously cares very much for Gail, but she doesn't get to the point of exclusivity, preventing any anger when Gail is unavailable to her. Meanwhile, she maintains her personal responsibility to Gail by being there for her whenever it is needed. Without Gail, it is doubtful that Ree would be able to endure as much responsibility and work as she does. In this way, Ree and Gail are mutually beneficial for each other, neither endangering each other with reckless attachment, while also being each others support system. It's a tough situation to have to maintain, but they both maintain it well, leading the the resolution you detailed at the end of the post, with Ree being able to take care of herself, and those around her. This wouldn't have been possible without Gail's support, just as Ree is necessary to help Gail through her troubled marriage and other hardships.
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