Innocents In Jarod Kintz's Montana 1948

A quotation by Jarod Kintz says, “I want to protect innocent people from sin by locking them in cages, where the evil can't get to them.” Although Kintz’s goal is to shelter the innocent, this form of protection does not come without a price. Often, the innocents would be cut off from reality in order to be safe. In Montana 1948, David's parents are overprotective, resulting in David being isolated from his community. Once the rape accusations against Uncle Frank reach David and begin to affect his personal life, it is realized that David’s parents cannot protect him any more from the reality of human nature.

While David began the summer of 1948 secluded from the rest of his world, learning about Uncle Frank's rape accusations forces David

When Grandpa Hayden sent his workers to rescue Uncle Frank, David sees the similar want for power between the two men. David knows that being part of the Hayden family “meant something in Bentrock” (119), and in Uncle Frank’s case, he exercises his influence by raping the weaker Native American girls. Similarly, Grandpa Hayden is described as a man who “wanted….needed power” (8). A negative mark on the the Hayden reputation could strip away that control. Torn between being loyal to the family or the town, Wes Hayden is a character David begins to really sympathize with as the story progresses.

At the beginning of Montana 1948, Wes was described as a “man who tried to turn two ways at once” (9). He showed his ability to stand up for what was right when he puts aside his familial relationship with Uncle Frank to explain, “‘This is a legal matter’” (108). Grandpa Hayden, somebody who is supposed to nurture and care for his family, is willing to attack one son in order to save the other, and David sees Wes Hayden’s place in the family and how he is trying to make something more of himself than Frank Hayden’s

David thinks the death of Uncle Frank means an end to the events in Montana 1948. Immediately after hearing about Uncle Frank’s death, David “could not keep concealed my satisfaction over what had happened” (155). Even though the death itself was morbid, David assumes that all of the worries looming over Wes Hayden would end. At the end of the novel, not only did Uncle Frank’s suicide separate David’s family, but all of the progress David’s father made in the investigation turned to waste. The gap in the family over Uncle Frank is shown during the funeral, where the two sides are “standing on the opposite side of the grave” (161). Because Wes started the investigation into the allegations against Uncle Frank, Grandpa Hayden deemed him the cause of Uncle Frank’s death and the rift in the family. To the rest of the public, Uncle Frank was “buried without scandal...in the usual reverent way” (160). Although he committed sinful acts of rape and murder in order to prove self-worth, Uncle Frank died a hero to Mercer County so Grandpa Hayden would keep the good family name intact. In a way, Uncle Frank’s death was a form of revenge against Wes Hayden, for he would not get the chance to finally prove himself to Grandpa Hayden and justice would never be