Sometimes a Great Notion

The themes of masculinity and power come up again as Lee experiences multifaceted humiliation. A group of rowdy teens attacks him on the beach, expressing town’s contempt for the Stampers and taking advantage of Lee’s relative weakness. To add insult to injury, Hank comes to Lee’s rescue, upsetting Lee both because his older brother’s fierce reputation easily scatters the teens and because Hank arrives at the beach instead of Viv, whom Lee has been angling to get alone and seduce. Lee angrily realizes that this is the second time Hank has saved him on that beach. As a child, Lee once fell into a hole caused by the decayed remnant of a tree creating a hollow in a sand dune and was stuck there until Hank pulled him out. Lee’s hatred of his brother only grows now that Hank has saved Lee’s life twice. Hank is also fueled by the need to outcompete other men. Driven by a need to demonstrate physical power, he gets into a senseless bar fight with a man evocatively named Big. Hank has insecurities just like Lee, and he is still upset about perceived wrongs from his time as a high school football star.

Spiritual elements are prominent in this section of the novel. The events of this section take place on Halloween, a holiday that traditionally celebrates the spiritual border between the living and the dead, and the crossing between the two. Indian Jenny carefully rations whisky she believes to be holy. Lee’s fateful fall down the devil’s stovepipe suggests an element of evil present in the Stampers’ world. The dead tree trapping Lee connects this dangerous aspect of the environment to the Stampers’ role as loggers, suggesting that trees may be the downfall of the Stampers and foreshadowing the future tragic loss of Joe Ben.

Joe Ben’s perspective is prominent in this section, giving a glimpse of his motives and character before his death later in the novel. He is superstitious and spiritual, anointing his children with his spit for luck. Joe Ben is relatively even-keeled, unlike his sometimes-hotheaded cousin Hank, and he exudes goodwill, unlike Lee, who is motivated by a quest for revenge. Because Joe Ben is depicted as relatively innocent in this section, his death later in the novel appears even more tragic.