One of Ree’s first stops was the home of Thump Milton. Knowing she was walking into a conversation with a terrifying man, Ree kept her attitude at a minimum. However, she was greeted at the door by Thump’s wife, Merab. Any calmness Ree had attempted to keep was gone. Throwing punches, kicking, and screaming, Ree could not find it in herself to have a normal conversation with Merab. If for some reason Merab were to deny Ree’s violence by soothing her, Ree would have continued to fight Merab’s kindness; violence was embedded into Ree’s mind. The interactions between Ree and Merab were not the first events that Ree would have rejected a diplomatic approach to solving one of her problems. Due to her family’s financial situation, they were left without a vehicle. Ree walked through the treacherous terrain around her home to reach her destinations. One destination included the home of her old-time friend, Gail. Gail became one of the only people Ree felt comfortable and secure around. However, when the time came that Ree asked to borrow Gail’s …show more content…
When Ree, a family member, approached the Milton household simply for a conversation, Merab chose a short tempered way to approach the problem. Merab’s movements while standing in the doorway gave off an intimidating, powerful image; her arms were crossed while her face remained emotionless. Despite the begging child on her doorstep, Merab insisted that Ree had no business being there. No efforts of a civil conversation came from Merab, she simply resorted to showing her power over Ree. Stern words were not the only thing that formed Merab into a heartless woman; she was the brains behind a violent attack against Ree later in the novel. The group of women welcomed Ree back to Merab’s home with kind, easing smiles. As Ree accepted the welcome, Merab initiated a senseless beating on to Ree. “Ree felt her joints unglue, become loose, and she was draining somehow, draining to the dirt . . . and she was sunk to a moaning place, kicked into silence” (Woodrell 130). Merab’s true violent self was unleashed towards Ree. Violence “. . . is the nature of all living things, and there is nothing that can be done to change that inherent instinct” (Robinson 2). Despite the false sense of comfort she gave to Ree, she could not resist the urge to overpower her. Violence thrived deep in Merab’s