Winter's Bone Essay

It is not a simple task to be a hero. In Joseph Campbell’s article What is a Hero? the many attributes and tasks one must perform in order to be a hero are discussed. In Daniel Woodrell’s novel Winter’s Bone, sixteen year old Ree Dolly is put to the test when she must prove her dad is dead in order for her family to remain in their house. In the story, she attempts to regain this house that is about to be taken from under her, faces the man she fears more than any other, and is able to find a solution to the dilemma she is presented with. Through this all, she places her family above herself, displaying true selflessness. Ree’s journey begins early on, when the deputy drops her two brothers off at her house after their school day was canceled

She completes her heroic travels by obtaining the ultimate boon or magic elixir. After the spirit-wrenching torture and pain she endures, Ree “is able, through brave deeds to procure this magic remedy and to solve the problem” (Campbell). In her quest, the elixir is her dead father’s hands. When Thump’s wife and her two sisters show up on Ree’s porch and tell her they can take her to her father’s bones, she is hesitant to go with them, as just days before the nearly beat her to death. Yet, she acknowledges that her choices are very few and goes along with them. It is an extremely difficult situation for her, as she must witness the hands on her late father be savagely chopped from his corpse, but knows it is something she has to do in order to keep the house and support her family. The following day, she perceives how her “dad’s hands bought a sorrow and a blessing” (187). Although now she is certain that her father is dead, his bones can now provide solace to the family as they do not have to worry about losing the house. Ree’s actions that night helped to secure her family’s positive fate and put an end to the problem that caused her adventure of