Who to blame?

How does Hal use blame to protect Cully and himself? What is Hal trying to protect himself from?     

      Cully's recent activity has been generating a stir in the town, as the star football player can no longer play right at the height of the season. Hal blames Cully's actions on human nature as well as the "boys will be boys" argument. "He knew part of this was just boy stuff. How many bold-faced lies had he told his own dad so he could go out drinking beer at the Ice Haus pool hall?" (Steinke 130). When Cully admits that he had sex with a drunk girl, Hal responds in an extremely sexist way. The following statement places blame on Willa for being a "girl like that," and takes some of the blame off of Cully. 

"There always were and always would be girls like that, Hal told him, but it was a man's job to judge the situation." (Steinke 149).  

     Hal is very clearly disturbed by his past. He constantly recounts times where he messed up and did things that he later regretted. Because of these events in his life, Hal fears what will happen to his son, Cully, who is drinking alcohol and getting into fights. Hal used to play football, and wants Cully to still be able to continue because of his level of skill. His status on the football team is one of the only things keeping him out of serious trouble. Hal is not only trying to protect Cully, however. He is also attempting to protect himself from looking like a bad role model and father. Most of the people Hal interacts with on a daily basis do not know that he was an unfaithful alcoholic. If they ever were to find out, Hal assumes they would instantly think that his past has a direct connection to the way Cully is acting. Therefore, Hal protects himself from shame by protecting Cully.

     

     Hal is also protecting himself by protecting his family name, which relies heavily on Cully. In his misogynistic mind, a man is the head of the family and therefore accountable for all members of the family. "Hal prayed to bring goodness and rightness back to his family.... Hal knew he could pass his success on to Cully too...." (Steinke 149). Obviously, this father wants the best for his child, yet maybe for the wrong reasons. Protecting himself and his image seems to be the biggest of his concerns, to the point where he is thinking about work while helping his son with a stranded car. He cannot even give his undivided attention to one thing due to his constant struggle for wealth and prosperity, the sole thing he chooses to repeatedly pray for. 

High School football protected Cully from serious punishment, and is a legacy that Hal wants him to carry on.

Discuss Dex’s mother’s reaction to learning that perhaps Dex attended the party.  Who does she blame?  What does her response reveal about her character?

     Dex's mother inherently trusts her son, and does not ask whether or not he was at the party where Willa was raped. Dex was afraid that if he told her, he would have difficulty getting her to believe that he wasn't drunk and wasn't involved, although her trust in him would have probably pulled through. Even if she assumes he was at the party, her blame was placed on the other members there, and she never even questions that her son was involved.

"I really can't believe it - Steve Snow and Cully Holbrook? They were both there?" (Steinke 181).

     Dex tells his mother that she is blaming the wrong people, and that the guys didn't know what was happening. This revelation of details leads the reader to believe that his mother thinks he attended the party. Regardless, she still leaves any possibility of blaming her son out of the question, literally not even questioning him. "My Dex knows how to control himself, no matter what present he's offered." This interaction shows that Dex's mother is deeply biased for her children, refusing to believe that they can do wrong. She will easily blame anybody else, as long as the blame is not on her or her family. This defense mechanism tells the reader that she may have insecurities about honor and pride, which play into her response to this event.

Dex's mother is quick to place blame on every person at the party, assuming they all knew what was happening above them.

Dex begins to befriend Willa. Is his friendship genuine? Why does he befriend Willa? Does he blame himself for what happens to her?

     The job of the reader is very difficult when decoding the relationship between Willa and Dex. Dex's friendship towards Willa is undoubtedly genuine, and he has a crush on her. He befriends Willa for multiple reasons. Firstly, the crush that Dex has had on Willa has been growing and festering, and now he sees the opportunity to work with her on a school project. Though the school project is not a primary reason that he is working with Willa, he does truly care about her and wants to help her. He may not be of much help with the project, but genuine human interaction must be very relieving after some time in social house arrest. 

     Although Dex doesn't directly blame himself for what happened, he knows that he could have done something, and therefore feels guilty. He now feels like he has a debt to repay to Willa, like he owes her something that he'll never be able to pay back. When confronted about Willa by the other guys, he responds by asking if they're threatening him.

"That was a pisspoor way of standing up for Willa, but it was the best he could do right now.

     Dex's crush on Willa most likely plays into the awful feeling that exists every time he thinks about the event. He gets defensive towards the guys, and only finds solace in it when talking to Willa's friend Dani. He looks at Willa's empty desk and takes a big move to be able to see her without arousing too much suspicion. He brings her flowers to show that he likes her, but her response to them is almost non-existent. The difficulty is deciding whether these things are on account of his crush on her, his guilt of not helping her, or some sad, confusing combination of both. Based on the evidence, it's both.