**NOTE: MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW. IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE BOOK, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND DOING THAT FIRST.
I hate to qualify the title, because Mason is possibly the best older brother ever, but he’s got some tough competition, including Darrel and Sodapop Curtis, the Motorcycle Boy, Adam and Hoss Cartwright, and a whole host of others.
Still, Mason comes in near the top of my list. Of course Tex is one of my favorite novels, but it is also one of my favorite novels in part because of Mason. So I went a little overboard and had to split this post into two.
Mason McCormick: a tall, proud, incredibly sarcastic, seventeen-year-old basketball fanatic whose one promise to Tex is that he won’t lie to him. Later on in Tex we discover the reason this is so important to Mason: their father never told Mason Tex wasn’t his son, and Mason had to discover this by his own ingenuity.
Interestingly, Mason’s insistence on not lying to Tex counters their father’s own “passive” lying. Mr. McCormick apparently never thought it was all that important to tell his son that he was not his father. (And when he finally does tell Tex, it’s because Tex has found out already, not because Mr. McCormick thought it was a good time.) It seems Mr. McCormick might have never told Tex if Tex had not found out.
Regardless, Mason’s commitment to not lying makes him a sort of “new” father figure in Tex’s life. A second father figure, and, while not perfect, a better one.
Indeed, as much as Mace is a brother to Tex, he is also a much-needed father. He knows when the gas gets turned off. He sells their horses to pay the gas and other bills. He even comes to talk to the junior high principal when Tex gets in trouble, in case their father doesn’t show up.
Jim Metzler plays Mason brilliantly—but I’ll leave that for another post.
Mason’s stinging sarcasm seems at times, to me, a bit harsh, but that’s partially just how he is. It’s also a result of the way he has had to quickly grow up and recognize reality for what it is: crummy. His way to deal with life is to make sarcastic, bitter jokes.
When Tex expresses the idea that other people on the highway have their own problems too, Mason says, “Yeah, sure I spend a lot of time worrying about that.” “I’m not worrying,” Tex says, “I’m thinking.” Mason: “Well, don’t pass out from the shock.” (91)
Likewise, when Mr. McCormick finally shows up at the junior high:
“You had just better wake up a little, man—” Mason began, when Pop walked in.
“Surprise, surprise,” Mason said. (176)
Earlier, when Cole Collins comes over inquiring about the state of his sons:
“Bob and Johnny came home drunk last night, and I’d like to know why.”
. . . “They were drinking, I imagine.” Mason sounded real calm.
“I know Bob. He’s not the kind of kid to do something like that, and he certainly would never let Johnny drink.” Cole sounded impatient.
“Well,” Mason said, measuring out his words like he was scared he was going to drop one, “if Bob wouldn’t drink and wouldn’t let Johnny, it sure is strange they came home drunk, isn’t it?” (50)
Wonderful sarcasm. (By the way, isn’t that such a wonderful metaphor? Words being things you can drop, like plates? What a tactile, concrete image.)
But this post is about why Mason is a great brother. A lot of brothers tease and fight with each other, Mason and Tex included. Why does Mason’s sarcasm matter?
Because it shows he cares.
Sarcasm only hides anger. And why is Mason angry? Most of the time, it’s because of the way their father treats Tex—like a “stray puppy,” as Mason says (177). In the situation with Cole above, it’s because Mason doesn’t like Cole just assuming he and Tex are the cause of anything bad.
And why does Mason get angry? Because he cares. In particular, about Tex. His sarcasm is partially him being funny, partially him being angry, but it’s also him caring, perhaps too much.
Next post we will look at what really makes Mason a good, protective brother—at, you might say, his softer side.
As always, any questions or comments are appreciated!
CloserThanBrothers 