Tex

Tex’s crush on Jamie examines traditional gender roles and the ways they play out and are questioned within the novel, written in the late 1970s. On the one hand, the reader witnesses Lem—17 or 18 years old—with a wife and son. On the other hand, Jamie demonstrates how traditional gender roles are changing rapidly. Jamie’s professed love for Tex never gives way to a sexual encounter, which could lead to pregnancy, or even to a long-term romantic relationship, which would endanger the independent future she sees for herself. Jamie’s feminism complicates Tex’s “Romeo and Juliet” fantasies about their relationship.

When Lem shows up at the McCormick’s house to tell them about the birth of his baby son, there are mixed reactions. Mason says, with “a streak of serious in his voice,” that another Lem Peters running around may not be a prudent idea (57). Lem himself appears excited, but he has left his young wife and baby at home—indicative of his inexperience and inability to be fully present. This lack of presence is solidified later as the reader learns of his risky and foolhardy endeavors in the drug-dealing world, a precarious venture for a young father. His traditional views are further cemented when, provoked by Jamie, Lem remarks, “I think women ought to stay home and take care of their husbands and kids” (64). Lem’s views on gender roles and marriage contrast with Jamie’s “women’s lib stuff,” as her brother Johnny labels her beliefs (64).

As the single female character apart from some teachers at school, Jamie remains outspoken. She speaks out against patriarchal values and speaks for her own independence solely in the presence of men. Her response to Lem’s retrograde comment is to double down: “Jamie’s eyes widened, then narrowed down like a fighting cat’s” (64). She proceeds to excoriate Lem’s wife’s potential mothering skills, young as she is. Later, Jamie tells Tex exactly what she thinks of how she is perceived by her father and most of the men in her life: “And me. The little lady. Cole has the hardest time understanding that I’m a person, just like the rest of his kids [her brothers], that being a girl doesn’t mean I’m going to be sweet and dainty and grow up to be a devoted little mother” (148). Jamie has different plans for herself, therefore she continues to keep Tex at arm’s length—literally.

The gender roles in the novel also play into the matter of consent in the novel. Before Tex asks Jamie out on a date, he asks his brother for advice: “Mace, when you’re making out with a girl and everything, how can you tell if it’s okay to go further?” (103). Mason essentially shrugs the question off: “You know, that’s all. If you make a mistake, she’ll let you know” (103). In an era when consent is key, the exchange is dated. Jamie is strong-willed and her boundaries are generally respected. Changing expectations regarding gender roles are revealed not only through Lem’s ultra-traditional views and Jamie’s formidable sense of independence, but also through the shifting cultural lens with which intimate interactions are negotiated.