Hunters in the Snow by Tobias Wolff

Is society too egotistical? In Hunters in the Snow, Tobias Wolfe gives an illustration of the selfishness and self-centeredness of humankind through the actions of his characters. The story opens up with three friends going on their habitual hunting routine; their names are Frank, Kenny, and Tub. In the course of the story, there are several moments of tension and arguments that, in essence, exposes the faults of each man: they are all narcissistic. Through his writing in Hunters in the Snow, Wolfe is conveying that the ultimate fault of mankind is egotism and the lack of consideration given to others.

For the duration of the story, there are several occurrences which exemplify insensitive as well as self-important mind-sets. Kenny, for instance, does not care about others around him; he is exceedingly self-absorbed. In one part, for instance, he jokingly yet dangerously runs Tub off the road with his vehicle. By doing so, Kenny is showing a careless side; a side that is neither concerned about hurting others nor himself. In his view, his entertainment comes before anything else; hence, injuring Tub was never a consideration. In addition, he also mercilessly taunts Tub about his weight when Kenny knows that it is both a touchy and upsetting subject matter for Tub. Frank, too, is also very self-centered since he is willing to leave his wife for their fifteen year old babysitter, who is barely half-way done with high school. The third main character, Tub, is also quite narcissistic because he becomes immensely defensive when it comes to his weight since he allows Kenny’s mock to offend him; therefore, Tub is egotistical given that he is fixated with his image.

As the story, Hunters in the Snow, progresses, the egotistical behaviors of the characters become even more apparent given the lack of sympathy when Kenny is gravely injured. Both Tub and Frank, for example, do not react as most friends would; as moral and compassionate friends would. Surprisingly, Tub, the individual who shoots Kenny in self-defense, shows neither guilt nor regret for his action as he watches his hunting companion collapse in pain. Tub as well as Frank pays no heed to Kenny’s distress as he lies in excruciating pain; basically, neither man shows a degree of remorse for their friend’s pain. For instance, both men are in no rush to transport Kenny to the hospital since they decide to stop at a tavern to get warm and leave Kenny in the truck in utter anguish.