This particular theme plays a role in all Southern literature. True to the Southern Literature genre, Dr. Vasseur inserts this theme into his short stories. In Noonan, this theme is apparent in almost every page that is read. The starting point for this theme begins as the author is recounting the days of his youth. “That year I had a feud going with Greg Edgeman, the pitcher for Mullen Motors… but we got along fine off the field (Vasseur 7)”. This statement shows how that as children, people already tend to put an emphasis on their relationships.
Another aspect of relationships is how family relationships can put a strain on the happiness of children. This is best illustrated by the fact that the father stops attending his son’s baseball games when things turn sour between him and his wife. The boy remembers a night, that while lying in bed, he overhears an argument between his mother and father. There was a subdued yet very tense atmosphere in our household, and I can trace it solidly, for sure, is the night when they began talking to one another angrily, using voices I had never heard from either of them (Vasseur 8). The boy lies in bed and wonders if he has done anything wrong. This is a common occurrence in domestic arguments. The children think that they are the problem when an argument arises, when in fact; it has nothing to do with them.
Relationships often change the way people behave if the