What Is The Relationship Between Leonard And Hap's Relationship In Savage Season

In life, growing up people always find that one person that they can have a bond with or just someone they can talk to about anything. Just like in football, players build a bond with each other to make the team chemistry stronger. The more time spent with each other the more of a friendship is formed. Leonard and Hap in Joe R. Lansdale’s buddy novel Savage Season are a prime example of having an amazing friendship. Even though they are an odd couple, the color of their skin nor obstacles they face can tear them apart because their values are similar and live by the bro code. Leonard and Hap’s friendship somehow pulls the two closer together causing them to share a lifetime filled with abundant experiences that most would not have endured during

that period. This paper will thoroughly examine these aspects which signify their unique relationship.
The two really shared a special yet rare friendship during that era. In the book Savage Season Hap states, “I tried to tell myself it was because I liked Leonard and wanted to see him make some money, and though this was true, I knew it too it was because I had come to depend on him so much. He bailed me out of hell so many times, he had become my spirit guide through life” (Lansdale 21). Hap truly could not fathom to operate without Leonard by his side. The two over time slowly became accustomed to each other’s ways. Long before the return of Hap’s ex-wife Trudy, the guys enjoyed a nice day by simply shooting clay birds or just hanging out. Leonard also was of much help in Hap’s progress with martial arts. It could be said that they resembled a Bonnie and Clyde relationship minus the sexual affection for one another.
Throughout the story, Hap and Leonard show each other what the true definition of a bro code by exhibiting sympathetic passion for another. At the beginning of the book Savage Season, from a distant Leonard spots Hap’s ex-wife walking toward them and warns him that she is trouble and he should be careful. Leonard exclaims “you know what I mean. Don’t come crying over to my plate if she does it to you again. Mind what I’m saying now” (Lansdale 4). By Leonard saying this, it helps elucidate his caring nature and signifies that he does not want Hap to reminisce back to the past. Through these moments the nature of their relationship is produced.
The nature of their relationship is direct and simple.

They each had the desire to have enough money to eventually retire somewhere pleasant, but were unsure of how to accomplish this goal. In an online article entitled Savage Season by Joe R. Lansdale it says “Their friendship substitutes for other familial relationships, and they are content to scrape a living at menial jobs as field hands or day laborers” (Swiftly Tilting Planet). The two met in East Texas out in some rose fields outside of LaBorde. Although, the two possess different opinions on different topics, the two never held anything against the other. Leonard was someone Hap could trust and turn to in dire situations. Both guys realized that they were underprivileged and shared common values which initially sparked their friendship. Hap and Leonard can best be described as cynical yet sympathetic characters. In Larrisa Kyzer’s review she states “Despite their loneliness- Leonard is a solitary gay man who gleans most of his affection from three fiercely loyal bird dogs, and Hap is perpetually hung up on his conniving ex-wife Trudy. Both men are relatively satisfied with, or at least accepting of, their workday existence” (Savage Season). However, they shared much more than a rather unique relationship. During that time period racism was very much alive. Hap and Leonard caught themselves in various situations where rednecks and racism supporters tried to influence their friendship, but the two paid the ignorance no mind. The struggles endured yet overcame amongst the two solidified how they perceived race. For Hap and Leonard, friendship was about the true character of an individual rather than outer appearance or skin

color.
The journey embarked by the two within the novel illustrates the many characteristics Hap and Leonard possess that complements the condition of their partnership. Although, most of the novel conveys changes amongst character relations, the friendship between Hap and Leonard goes unchanged. They stick to their code which happens to be living outside of the law because of their underprivileged condition. The reader can sometimes conclude that they are blood-brothers and then at other times it seems like they act like an old married couple. There were also instances where the two joked around seemingly like unemployed comedians. They truly complement each other and the title of friendship goes far beyond just a name as they elucidate what it means to be a friend in its entirety.
Hap and Leonard eventually became friends because they both were working out in some rose fields, but they never knew they’d actually turn out to be lifelong buddies. During this process, the two had daily arguments which sometimes went on forever, but they never held anything against the other party. This ultimately generated a refreshing partnership that would deem inseparable. They were of the same social class, underprivileged East Texans, so it only seemed suitable. They also shared the same interest in martial arts including boxing, kenpo, and hapkido. Ultimately, the development of their friendship helped work out some of the frustrations of daily life in East Texas. They knew that they honestly could depend on each other in dire situations without having to worry about the other backstabbing him. To them friendship not only meant a state of mutual trust and support amongst one another, and it definitely was much more than just carrying the title of being friends. Joe Lansdale’s novel, Savage Season, introduces the reader to some cynical buddies, Hap and Leonard. This novel enables the cognitive process of imagination to picture the two just as they’re stated in the book as jaded, struggling individuals caught in a timeless pursuit of fortune. However, Hap and Leonard are a great representation of how friendship should be implemented. People are often subtle to judge based on outer appearance, ethnicity, religion, or sexuality which is contrary to Hap and Leonard’s beliefs. Friendship to them was further than skin deep as they cordially embraced each other’s company. Hap and Leonard who are in fact complete opposites build a bond that is truly inseparable in nature.