Richard Ford’s short story “Rock Springs” introduces a character who unites the roles of family man and criminal—two vocations that are polarized in amount of honor they generally convey upon a person. On the one hand, Earl shows himself to be a man of honor in several ways; yet, alongside this his livelihood is based on larceny. Earl’s occupational delinquency is tainted by an uncharacteristic sense of responsibility, and this unlikely relationship is made strangely possible by the fluid anonymity granted them by the transience of the highway setting.
Though in this duality, Earl is able to retain a certain sense of rectitude because of the caprices of the law as they travel through different states, the strain on his relationship with his family seems gradually to increase as they progress in their journey. The introduction the author gives to the main character Earl demonstrates from the beginning the duality of this man’s nature where responsibility is concerned.The paragraph immediately familiarizes the reader with his problems with the law, and it also introduces his relationship with Edna, a restless woman who might at that point be considered in the light of a sidekick, or “more or less [his] wife. ” However, the harshness of these person’s perceived intentions toward society quickly transforms. The introduction of Edna’s troubles with he children and ex-husband immediately softens the reader’s view of her, and this leads to a similar softening of Earl’s character as he appears to offer a certain amount of protection to Edna.
Finally, it introduces an important reason for Earl’s moving in with Edna, which is “to give [his] little daughter, Cheryl, a better shake in things. ” The fact that this man shares with many honorable men a sense of responsibility toward his family humanizes him enough from the beginning to garner a certain amount of sympathy from the reader. The setting of the story allows the family a certain level of freedom in carrying out the deviant act of car theft.Continuous motion along the interstate grants them a changing environment and makes it possible for them always to appear (or be presumed) innocent by any ephemeral meetings with strangers.
It is also notable that they begin their journey in Montana—a state that is known for having no speed limit and which, according to the narrator, also allows persons to drink alcohol while driving. The fact that these two lawful actions are considered felonies in other states lends an air of mutability to laws. This feeling might be transferred to Earl’s thieving actions, and the reader might come to regard them with a certain amount of relativity.In this case, Earl’s respectability might be allowed to increase, and he may be seen merely as a responsible father and “husband” doing his best to give a good life to his family.
Earl’s responsibility as husband and father is strained by his occupation, and this becomes more apparent as he drives further south along the interstate. This mirrors their removal away from the (seemingly) sympathetic laws of Montana and into the less forgiving legal atmosphere of Wyoming. The stolen car begins to complain, and restlessness begins to surface in Edna. She says to him, “I’m tired of this.
I wish I’d stayed in Montana. ” Even his daughter shows signs of despairing of this lifestyle, as she echoes a similar thought. Earl himself is pressured by the theft, especially in his attempt to keep it from his daughter whom he believes “doesn’t need to know about this car. ” It is a sense of responsibility that causes this wish, and one gets the feeling that he is beginning to realize the incompatibility of the two lifestyles. The story “Rock Springs” takes the reader into the mind of a character who exhibits his humanity in the way he mixes good with evil.
He possesses an honorable sense of responsibility toward his family, working to take care of them and to preserve the innocence of his child. Yet his actions also deviate from what is accepted by the law, and this gradually takes a toll on his family life. The setting of the story also makes possible the life that he leads, as the highway facilitates the drifting that is characteristic of it. Yet the setting also contributes to the rising weariness of his family, and they begin after all to question his responsibility and their fate as a unit.
