Hunters in the Snow

“Hunters in the Snow” is narrated from a third-person limited perspective. Tub is the main point-of-view character; however, the reader doesn’t hear any of the characters’ internal monologues or feelings. Dialogue is the primary characterization and exposition tool. Wolff uses a literary technique in this short story known as “Dirty Realism.” While Realism focuses on using simple language with realistic plots, characters, and settings, Dirty Realism uses those same elements but focuses on the darker side of contemporary life and those of lower socioeconomic status. Works of Dirty Realism often use dark irony and follow characters who get into trouble.

The main themes in “Hunters in the Snow” include the impact of toxic dynamics in friendships, neglect because of narcissism, and the relationship between man and nature. The title symbolizes the bond between Tub, Kenny, and Frank, which is rooted in violence and cruelty. This cruelty is shown in the very first sentence: “Tub had been waiting for an hour in the falling snow” (20). This sentence serves two main purposes: It characterizes Tub’s friends, Kenny and Frank, as inconsiderate, and it establishes that the setting is cold and snowy. This mention of snow hints at the role the setting and weather will play in the story and reflects the cold, hostile dynamic between these three friends.

The truck that Kenny and Frank arrive in has a broken windshield and heater that Kenny has either neglected or can’t afford to get repaired, and yet they choose the truck as their mode of transportation. This choice symbolizes the three men choosing to remain friends despite the hostility and cruelty between them. The dialogue portrays the verbal abuse Tub receives while also giving insight into the type of people Kenny and Frank are. Kenny and Frank’s treatment of Tub is a focal point in exploring this toxic dynamic. The first line of dialogue is Kenny’s insult about Tub. He says, “He looks just like a beach ball with a hat on, doesn’t he? Doesn’t he Frank?” (20). Frank is dismissive of Tub’s feelings, telling him to “be mellow” (20). Later in the story, he says to Tub, “You haven’t seen your own balls in ten years” (22). Toxicity, exclusion, and neglect also appear when Tub is struggling to trudge through the snow, and neither Frank nor Kenny stop to help him.

Kenny’s frustration at not being able to track and kill a deer is the climactic point of the story. Kenny lashes out by shooting a tree and the farmer’s dog, and then pretending he going to shoot Tub. Kenny’s cruelty toward nature parallels his cruelty toward Tub. Though the farmer asked Kenny to shoot the dog, Kenny keeps this a secret and pretends to do it out of hatred. Tub, believing Kenny when he tells Tub he hates him too, shoots Kenny in self-defense. Secrecy and deception result in Tub shooting Kenny. The weakness of the bonds that tie Frank and Kenny is exposed and the power dynamic shifts as Frank aligns with Tub against Kenny. The story suggests that friendships rooted in shared cruelty rather than communication and compassion are fickle and harmful.

Tub transforms from a person who is ostracized and accepts ridicule and abuse to someone who confronts his tormenters. He grabs Frank by the collar when Frank calls him a “fat moron” (29). However, this act also highlights Tub’s neglectful selfishness. Kenny is severely wounded and in need of medical attention, but Tub decides to confront Frank. Kenny’s position in the friend group also shifts. He goes from being arrogant and cruel to quiet, passive, and powerless.

After discovering no ambulances are available, Frank and Tub must transport Kenny 50 miles to the nearest hospital in Kenny’s truck. The truck’s broken windshield and heater cause Frank and Tub to show their self-absorbed and neglectful tendencies. They stop twice on the way to the hospital, leaving Kenny in the back of the truck and prioritizing their need to warm up above getting Kenny the medical attention he needs. Wolff uses irony to convey how self-absorbed Frank and Tub are. While in the tavern, Frank admits to having an affair with the babysitter and is concerned about what Tub will think of him. Tub declares, “When you’ve got a friend it means you’ve always got someone on your side, no matter what” (33). The irony is that Tub says this while Kenny is in the back of the truck, cold, wounded, and alone.

Frank’s affair is selfish and neglectful because he is considering leaving his wife and children for the babysitter. He is convinced he’s in love and can only see the situation from his perspective, not stopping to think of the damage it could cause to his family. Tub makes his own confession in the roadhouse, telling Frank that he doesn’t have an issue with his glands. He just eats too much. In response, Frank buys his four plates of pancakes and slathers them in butter and syrup. While it might seem that Frank and Tub are being supportive of one another, Tub’s failure to warn Frank away from potentially ruining his and his family’s lives, and Frank’s enabling of Tub’s unhealthy relationship with food, enable the other to continue with their self-destructive behavior. Wolff suggests that friendships rooted in cruelty, enabling, and negligence are dangerous and destructive.