Then, there are the vital young men that are most prized of all family members, the seed-bearers and strong backs, the fair sons who survive only to perish at Fredricksburg or Appomattox in a war they never understood. However, the most enthralling aspect of this novel is Miller's talent for capturing the mind and soul of her characters. The narrative slides effortlessly from objective to subjective description as the author slides into the minds of her characters, like a hand into a glove. Miller is concerned with the souls of these people who are in turn, frail, shy, stubborn and willful. I find Miller's conclusions compatible with those of my own grandparents in Rhodes Cove.
Life is harsh, and the only response to it is forbearance and stoic acceptance.
Mankind is frail, weak and carnal and probably deserves all of the attending suffering that God sends. We are here to fulfill a purpose for the Almighty, but we usually fail. We must try again. Both men and women are helpless in the grasp of sexuality, and love sometimes comes like a fatal sickness or a sudden storm that wrecks families, alienates friends and blights lives. That can't be helped.