By LARRY BALLWAHN | Wilton
Quoyle was 36 before anyone ever told him he had done the right thing. By then, he had held several jobs, lost both parents as well as his wife, and had two daughters. His wife had died much as she had lived, with another man. Despite her wayward ways, Quoyle loved her beyond reason. Perhaps the aunt’s idea of a fresh start was the thing to do.
What his aunt, Agnes Hamm, had in mind was to return to where she was raised, Quoyles’ Point, Newfoundland. Because of some newspaper experience that he had had in the states, Quoyle was hired by a newspaper called The Gammy Bird. It was here that he received the first positive reinforcement that he had ever experienced. To add some interest to the column that enumerated the coming and going of ships from Killick-Claw harbor, Quoyle wrote about an unusual barge that was there. The publisher liked the addition. He encouraged Quoyle to do more of that.
Quoyle’s Point had a strange history. The house of the aunt’s childhood had been dragged across the ice from Gaze Island to the point after the Quoyles had worn out their welcome. Although the house had not been lived in for many years, it still was judged as worthy of repair, by Quoyle and the aunt. A local carpenter agreed to undertake the job. He and his wife became friends and mentors to Quoyle and his daughters.
Bunny, the eldest daughter, tended to be temperamental, though she tried to help with the house repair. Sunshine was easier going. The two did get along and enjoyed being with the children of the carpenter, Dennis Buggit, and his wife, Beety. Bunny initially saw a white dog that she feared a great deal. Those around her failed to see it. Bunny’s belief in the white dog played an important role in the story’s development.
Before going any further, it is important to point out a couple of things the author does.
Proulx uses knots from Clifford W. Ashley’s 1944 work, “The Ashley Book of Knots,” to head each chapter. Each knot comes with a brief description and sets out the theme for that particular part of the story. Another thing that she does is often use short, descriptive sentences to convey important information. Quoyle’s thoughts on Newfoundland: “A watery place. And Quoyle feared water, could not swim.” An early description of Quoyle: “A great damp loaf of a body.”
Quoyle began giving rides to a lady that he often passed in the road. He learned that she had a disabled son and that she offered schooling to others with disabilities. Since she lost her husband to the sea, and Quoyle had suffered more than his share of loss, they developed a friendship. He had a good relationship with her son, and she was a good influence with his daughters.
The Gammy Bird was owned by Jack Buggit, though he did not operate the paper. He did set the tone, expecting the paper to offer up anything that might draw a wide readership. A wreck a week was featured, and any sexually deviant behavior made it into the news. It turned out that Quoyle’s additions to the shipping news and the expansion of wrecks to those in the harbor met with Jack’s approval. Quoyle slowly gained a reputation as a good Newfoundland newspaper man. In fact, he was named editor when Tert Card left.
Nothing has been said about the aunt’s business, Quoyle’s boats, the winter storm, the mysterious Quoyle cousin or the attempt to keep the Buggit children from the sea. All of those things combine with what is already here to make “The Shipping News” a classic.
