Topic: How did Ennis and Jack Really see each other?

[tpe]

This is true. They were  missing each other and were in each other's thoughts during the 4 year separation. In the motel scene Ennis explained that he thought the "Army had got him" and / or that Jack was still pissed off about the punch. Ennis never thought he'd see Jack again. Maybe even thought he'd been killed in the war.
 In any case he was resigned to making a living and taking care of his family. It's obvious that he still preferred Jack over the life he had. The SS alludes to this.  should never have  let Jack out of his sight. He still could not get his head around the fact that Jack loved him without conditions, it was too good to be true. To him there were consecquences to be paid for loving him back since he was taught against the very thing that he desired as a grown man. If he allowed himself to freely love Jack, bad things were gonna happen to them....But..Even his wife or the birth of 2 dearly loved daugters could not extinguish this fire inside. Brokeback did "get them good" as Jack acknowledged. Jack was his "lil dariln" as the SS said, putting Jack in the category with the  most beloved and precious loves of his life: his girls and his horses. The use of this endearment is telling in the way Ennis felt about Jack. Jack had to know Ennis loved him but had conflicts inside himself.

You know, don't you think that their true yearning for each other is best appreciated in those times when they are apart.  Their vision is not cloided by fear and caution, because it is in those times away from each other that they realize that they can't live without the other.

Separation makes them honest -- most especially to themselves.

[lamusica]

Well said, Thomas. 

[manhattangirl]

The four year separation was almost an affirmation at the reunion of what they had in '63 was real, and neither never recovered from it, nor sought to be cured of it.    But it also showed just the way it was going to be between them, after all it was Jack who who sought out and bought Ennis to life, but it was Ennis who kept Jack in a reality that at times could tear them apart.   

IMO:  Separation in their relationship.    Sometimes I looked at the separation in the years that followed the reunion, as such a unnecessary self-imposed exile from each other.  Not by any outside force, but by their own design. 

The remarkable love they showed and had for each other, could be followed the pain they could inflict on each other, and pain they inflicted on themselves as individuals in a week that maybe happened once or twice a year.   

Separation could be a two edged sword,  it may lead to appreciation, an honesty, but also deep resentment, anger by one who may feel slighted after a while.   Jack felt that way,  Ennis couldn't understand that because separation in his mind kept him and Jack safe.  "We could get together every once in a while", as long as they could hang on.   Jack was tire of just hanging on he wanted more than that, but Ennis was going through his own kind of hell.  The final confrontation, that moment had to come, it was inevitable.   

[aintfoolin]

This a great post MG and I totally agree. The "absence makes the heart grow fonder" is fine....for a while. After enough years have past one tends to tire of postcards, letters, and phone calls.  I've personally lived this existence and that's all it really is ...an existence, not really living. Nothing  replaced real time with Ennis for Jack. He wanted more time with the one he loved. Just time. to touch, and feel and visiualize Ennis . I cannot imagine Jack's half life for 20 years. that's a long, long time to wait for some one to come around. His cheating in this case is now understandable with all the temptation he must've experienced. He rode" more than bulls*  during the separations  but not because he wanted to, but because he had no other choice. Ennis was'nt taking care of business where he should have. By not agreeing to make time with Jack, he is part responsible for Jack's infidelities. There's no way around it. He left Jack dangerously vulnerable sexually as well as mentally, emotionally and open to physical bodily harm. Had he been with Jack, he might have kept Jack from the attack of the tire irons. ( If that's what really happened,I'm not sure), but in any case Ennis had it backwards .Being WITH Jack made them safer, not separation. MHO

[lamusica]

Interesting idea, Mnhattangirl -- Separation was their relationship.  That is sooooo true.  That's why Jack had to say his famous line about missing Ennis so much he could hardly stand it.  His whole life was spent missing Ennis.
Also, aintfoolin, it is interesting that Ennis contributed to Jack's endangerment by trying to keep him safe via their separation.  What a twist of fate, no?  Something to chew on, for sure.

[welshwitch]

I agree with Aintfoolin. At the beginning the excitement, anticipation and thrill of meeting only intermittently and in secret keeps you going but after a bit it becomes evident that it's less than half a life when you see the person you love only briefly and irregularly, and know that that's their choice. Then you begin to wonder what is being done to you and why; the next stage is to ask yourself whether it's all worth the effort and the misery of separation. Then maybe you look for alternatives; this I think Jack initially did via empty sexual encounters but later perhaps more seriously in a search for the life he wants, even if it has to be with someone other than Ennis. Eventaully it becomes evident that the other person involved doesn't value you enough to commit to you no matter what, and is using your commitment and love. This can be consciously; with Ennis I thiunk it's unconscious but nevertheless affects Jack just as much as if it weren't.

[tpe]

So can we say that Jack -- in the end -- thought that Ennis valued him less, and therefore loved him less?

[manhattangirl]

Both had tears in their eyes at that final meeting, both acknowledge the pain the other was going through, but felt they couldn't do anything about it.  that's the amazingly crazy aspect of it.     

[lamusica]

Again, having read the SS yesterday ( for the ?? time), Annie's lines that "nothing changed" after Jack and Ennis fought in the final scene has convinced me that both men were going to continue their very unsatisfactory relationship with little or no change.  That doesn't mean they hadn't become more aware of the pain they have caused one another, but maybe that's just part of living and loving, too.  No one comes up to their lover's expectations 100%.  There's got to be some compromising going on or the relationship couldn't last 20 years.  Just MHO, but I think this, too, points to Jack and Ennis recognizing their complementary relationship to one another.  They are two parts of a whole, eventhough they may be with other people from time to time and live very separate lives most of the time.

[tpe]

Both had tears in their eyes at that final meeting, both acknowledge the pain the other was going through, but felt they couldn't do anything about it.  that's the amazingly crazy aspect of it.     

The craziness is magnified when we consider that both knew where their happiness lay, and yet it was resistance to this knowledge that was at the heart of their unhappiness.

[tpe]

Again, having read the SS yesterday ( for the ?? time), Annie's lines that "nothing changed" after Jack and Ennis fought in the final scene has convinced me that both men were going to continue their very unsatisfactory relationship with little or no change.  That doesn't mean they hadn't become more aware of the pain they have caused one another, but maybe that's just part of living and loving, too.  No one comes up to their lover's expectations 100%.  There's got to be some compromising going on or the relationship couldn't last 20 years.  Just MHO, but I think this, too, points to Jack and Ennis recognizing their complementary relationship to one another.  They are two parts of a whole, eventhough they may be with other people from time to time and live very separate lives most of the time.

But I wonder if Jack ever did think that Ennis ever compromised...  For Jack, it is possible that he saw the increasing separation between them over the years as an artifact of Ennis resisting his true feelings more and more, refusing to give an inch even as the pressure inside of him only kept increasing...

[jackster]

Just MHO, but I think this, too, points to Jack and Ennis recognizing their complementary relationship to one another.  They are two parts of a whole.

Much agreed here lamusica and well said.
IMHO one of Annie’s inspirations is the complex balance she creates in the SS. So much of modern American life is focused on finding whose at fault when things go wrong or don’t work out. I think she shows rather beautifully that sometimes things just go wrong and it can’t be blamed on any person or event. Especially when it involves complicated constructs like people’s lives and loves. These two guys were pretty good for each other given a time and a place when the choices were pretty limited, and they both did achieve a bit of painful self-realization of who they were.

One difference I have in interpreting her simple phrases “Nothing ended, nothing begun, nothing resolved” and “they torqued things almost to where they had been” – to me this indicates a slight movement (the direction isn’t specified) but some movement. These are kind of contradictory, but I’m optimistic enough to think of it as an advancement in understanding their relationship if not a sea-change. Ennis’s “heart shot” (in the film his admittance that he couldn’t stand it any longer) is, IMHO a sign of progress.

[tpe]

Much agreed here lamusica and well said.
IMHO one of Annie’s inspirations is the complex balance she creates in the SS. So much of modern American life is focused on finding whose at fault when things go wrong or don’t work out. I think she shows rather beautifully that sometimes things just go wrong and it can’t be blamed on any person or event. Especially when it involves complicated constructs like people’s lives and loves. These two guys were pretty good for each other given a time and a place when the choices were pretty limited, and they both did achieve a bit of painful self-realization of who they were.

One difference I have in interpreting her simple phrases “Nothing ended, nothing begun, nothing resolved” and “they torqued things almost to where they had been” – to me this indicates a slight movement (the direction isn’t specified) but some movement. These are kind of contradictory, but I’m optimistic enough to think of it as an advancement in understanding their relationship if not a sea-change. Ennis’s “heart shot” (in the film his admittance that he couldn’t stand it any longer) is, IMHO a sign of progress.

Beautiful post, jackster.  Proulx certainly added depth to the interaction between the characters by refusing to pinpoint specific blame or fault.  And in spite of everything, I do agree that they did reach a level of self-realization that is neither perfect nor closed.  In this and in the way they view each other, they mirror life and the tug and pull or real relationships.  That's why they seem to be more than real to many of us here.

The movement that you speak about is certainly tantalizing.  It could mean a movement away from Ennis in the case of Jack, or perhaps a movement towards Jack in the case of Ennis.  It could hint at a gradual shift in their understanding of each other.  Perhaps this movement points to all these.  Disparate or contradictory, we cannot help but be moved that even at moments of stasis, as in the Dozy Embrace, we feel that they struggle, and are therefore subject to the powerful tug and pull of their love.

[aintfoolin]

These are both excellent posts jackster and tpe . very insightful! Indeed their love was mirrored in each other. Jack loved Ennis . Ennis loved Jack. This is the undisputed fact of the matter, but I think there is one thing they did'nt realize and that is love is never a cut and dried thing. In love there is a series of comprimises when an impass emerges.. Ennis could not see that a a little give and take in a relationship is essential to it's well being.He does not respond well to forced emotional matters. The things Jack said in that last meeting had to be said wether Ennis liked it or not. Jack could no longer "stand it" and neither could Ennis. The time had come to start "fixing it" With a love this strong, there is no "standing " anything other than coming to some sort of comprimise and a coming to terms with this "thing" as Ennis puts it. Jack had comprimised for 20 years, going along with what Ennis needed . Communication was lacking due to both their fears. Ive often thought that if perhaps Jack would have *backed off* and let Ennis come to him on his own, just like he did in SNIT, it would have been on his own terms after he has analyzed the whole thing as he often does. After the reunion scene, there was no doubt how Ennis felt about Jack. The love was there and it would not be easy for Ennis loose Jack  again judging from the way he welcomed Jack back into his life and what he said about never letting him out of his sight. I think  Jack should have tested Ennis's love for him by letting Ennis *stew*  or chill out  for a while. In time, either way the peices fell , Jack would have gotten an answer to his complicated dilemma. Jack could not change Ennis That is something Ennis had to do on his own. He did it once, maybe he'll do it again.

[lamusica]

Well said, jackster and tpe.
Aintfoolin, you hit the nail on the head.  If only Jack had waited for Ennis to make a move in the later years.  What would have happened?  Would ENnis have finally jumped in his pickup and headed for Texas? Would he have just felt rejected by Jack and not tried to make contact.  This is an intriguing dilemna to consider.

[aintfoolin]

Perhaps Ennis felt pressured into making a life-altering  change in his way of life. A totally different lifestyle that he both feared and felt ashamed of within himself.  Maybe this explains his need to be separated from Jack especially after the reunion, and then the divorce incident.  He knew what Jack wanted and Jack probably brought up his plans for him and Ennis putting Ennis in a constant state of anxiety  every time they met. Perhaps Jack should,ve  backed off a little, let Ennis come to him.   But on the other hand , 20 years is a long time. The man is stubborn and set in his ways . Change did not sit very well with him and Jack was being very patient with him, until the last time. This was IMO the ultimate pressure ,reality contained in Jack's words that rained down on him. He knew Jack was right all along, but now he knows that Jack has been unfaithful due to his own  refusal to face facts and change his ways since the reunion and  Jack had called him on it. Jack was finding other outlets for sexual gratification other than him. I think he saw Jack slipping away from him and this scared the crap out of him. Jack  forced Ennis to take a  good, hard look at the situation he kept him in.  He had to feel caged in.( A short leash) , needing Ennis in every sense of the word, yet Ennis was  making Jack wait and wait / and or do it his way or he would become violent over * all them things he did'nt know* , but Jack did not fear the threat like Ennis thought he would.  He was a man with needs in his own right. Jack was no longer going to put up with the status quo and he forced Ennis to see that , and that he was going to find what he needed with or without him. Jack finally had the upper hand and called Ennis's bluff. Ennis got the upper hand right back by telling Jack to "let him be"  or did he? Jack did'nt know how to " quit* Ennis  right then  because he loved him so deeply ,but  he was on his way to finding out how  ... Randall was already in the mix. in my opinion.

[tpe]

These are both excellent posts jackster and tpe . very insightful! Indeed their love was mirrored in each other. Jack loved Ennis . Ennis loved Jack. This is the undisputed fact of the matter, but I think there is one thing they did'nt realize and that is love is never a cut and dried thing. In love there is a series of comprimises when an impass emerges.. Ennis could not see that a a little give and take in a relationship is essential to it's well being.He does not respond well to forced emotional matters. The things Jack said in that last meeting had to be said wether Ennis liked it or not. Jack could no longer "stand it" and neither could Ennis. The time had come to start "fixing it" With a love this strong, there is no "standing " anything other than coming to some sort of comprimise and a coming to terms with this "thing" as Ennis puts it. Jack had comprimised for 20 years, going along with what Ennis needed . Communication was lacking due to both their fears. Ive often thought that if perhaps Jack would have *backed off* and let Ennis come to him on his own, just like he did in SNIT, it would have been on his own terms after he has analyzed the whole thing as he often does. After the reunion scene, there was no doubt how Ennis felt about Jack. The love was there and it would not be easy for Ennis loose Jack  again judging from the way he welcomed Jack back into his life and what he said about never letting him out of his sight. I think  Jack should have tested Ennis's love for him by letting Ennis *stew*  or chill out  for a while. In time, either way the peices fell , Jack would have gotten an answer to his complicated dilemma. Jack could not change Ennis That is something Ennis had to do on his own. He did it once, maybe he'll do it again.

This certainly touches on something I had thought about: that Jack probably did see Ennis as someone who reacts to confrontation.  I suspected that Jack realized early on that if certain things were left unsaid, then Ennis would go further than if things were brought out to the strong light of day, so to speak...  But Jack's dream of a life together cound not be phrased any more subtly -- it had to be discussed out in the open, and this became Jack's burden.

Hence, I suspected that Jack probably understood that Ennis was capable of some compromise so long as things were left unsaid.  Unfortunately, this can't be done when a dream of a shared life was concerned -- that was tantamount to living out in the open, as far as Ennis was concerned.

Why didn't they just do what the character did in Forster's Maurice: disappear into the wilderness with his lover?  I suspect that even if they would settle in the most remote part of the globe, Ennis would still consider this as being too "out in the open".  A great deal had to do with his mindset, I would think...

[tpe]

Well said, jackster and tpe.
Aintfoolin, you hit the nail on the head.  If only Jack had waited for Ennis to make a move in the later years.  What would have happened?  Would ENnis have finally jumped in his pickup and headed for Texas? Would he have just felt rejected by Jack and not tried to make contact.  This is an intriguing dilemna to consider.

I suspect that there was a possibility that Ennis would have withdrawn totally, and perhaps jack understood that this was just as likely if he remained in Texas and stopped seeing Ennis.  This is part of the reason why I thought that the move back to LF was part provocation.  Jack was Ennis as someone you had to be in his face before he could be moved.  The reunion certainly illustrated this, I think, and perhaps Jack thought that the same could be achieved if he moved back with someone else.

[tpe]

Perhaps Ennis felt pressured into making a life-altering  change in his way of life. A totally different lifestyle that he both feared and felt ashamed of within himself.  Maybe this explains his need to be separated from Jack especially after the reunion, and then the divorce incident.  He knew what Jack wanted and Jack probably brought up his plans for him and Ennis putting Ennis in a constant state of anxiety  every time they met. Perhaps Jack should,ve  backed off a little, let Ennis come to him.   But on the other hand , 20 years is a long time. The man is stubborn and set in his ways . Change did not sit very well with him and Jack was being very patient with him, until the last time. This was IMO the ultimate pressure ,reality contained in Jack's words that rained down on him. He knew Jack was right all along, but now he knows that Jack has been unfaithful due to his own  refusal to face facts and change his ways since the reunion and  Jack had called him on it. Jack was finding other outlets for sexual gratification other than him. I think he saw Jack slipping away from him and this scared the crap out of him. Jack  forced Ennis to take a  good, hard look at the situation he kept him in.  He had to feel caged in.( A short leash) , needing Ennis in every sense of the word, yet Ennis was  making Jack wait and wait / and or do it his way or he would become violent over * all them things he did'nt know* , but Jack did not fear the threat like Ennis thought he would.  He was a man with needs in his own right. Jack was no longer going to put up with the status quo and he forced Ennis to see that , and that he was going to find what he needed with or without him. Jack finally had the upper hand and called Ennis's bluff. Ennis got the upper hand right back by telling Jack to "let him be"  or did he? Jack did'nt know how to " quit* Ennis  right then  because he loved him so deeply ,but  he was on his way to finding out how  ... Randall was already in the mix. in my opinion.

I do think that it was part shame and a degree of conservatism that kept Ennis out of reach, and I think Jack understood this.  Specifically, Jack must have realized and felt bad that Ennis to some extent was ashamed of his relationship with Jack.  Jack must have seen this as part of the reason why Ennis refused to move in with him, and the botched post-divorce meeting reinforced it.  I think Jack was and understood Ennis's shame, but it porbably hurt, nonetheless. 

[jackster]

It seems that a lot of discussion recently is focused on Jack's really wanting this relationship to work and Ennis's unwillingness to go along. To me that's part of the story, but Jack didn't show much creativity here either IMHO. If Lureen's ol' man was willing to pay him off to get lost, why didn't he? Take the money Jack n' head north to Wyomin', set up shop outside Riverton somewheres and be closer to Ennis. At least make gettin' together easier, even if it still was "way the hell out in the middle a' nowhere". Maybe try and work something out nearby, he had the ability to do it (so we're lead to believe). Poor Ennis had to quit his jobs sometimes just to get time off and see Jack, he started with nuthin' (and ended with nuthin'), at least Jack had two parents with a ranch even if it wasn't much. It seems Jack had a lot more options than Ennis but he didn't really utilize 'em much, except the ability to get away and drive north. Yeah, Ennis said "two guys livin' together - no way" but shoot, he didn't say you had ta' be 1200 miles away. Even 50 or 100 miles woulda' worked on weekends and holidays. Ennis was obstinate, but when the spirit moved him he went with flow pretty damn well - FNIT, SNIT, Reunion, Jack had to know this and appreciate it.

[tpe]

It seems that a lot of discussion recently is focused on Jack's really wanting this relationship to work and Ennis's unwillingness to go along. To me that's part of the story, but Jack didn't show much creativity here either IMHO. If Lureen's ol' man was willing to pay him off to get lost, why didn't he? Take the money Jack n' head north to Wyomin', set up shop outside Riverton somewheres and be closer to Ennis. At least make gettin' together easier, even if it still was "way the hell out in the middle a' nowhere". Maybe try and work something out nearby, he had the ability to do it (so we're lead to believe). Poor Ennis had to quit his jobs sometimes just to get time off and see Jack, he started with nuthin' (and ended with nuthin'), at least Jack had two parents with a ranch even if it wasn't much. It seems Jack had a lot more options than Ennis but he didn't really utilize 'em much, except the ability to get away and drive north. Yeah, Ennis said "two guys livin' together - no way" but shoot, he didn't say you had ta' be 1200 miles away. Even 50 or 100 miles woulda' worked on weekends and holidays. Ennis was obstinate, but when the spirit moved him he went with flow pretty damn well - FNIT, SNIT, Reunion, Jack had to know this and appreciate it.

Hello jackster.  This connects with my post about Ennis wanting it to be this way: i.e., maintaining the status quo.  With Ennis unwilling to go with Jack, there was very little incentive for Jack to leave Lureen.  But I am sure all of us would agree that if Ennis gave the OK, then Jack would drop everything to be with Ennis.

Well, in the end, Jack did reach a limit no?  I guess this came in the form of Randall and a whole new world of possibilities that dangled before him, if he had so wish to take it.

[aintfoolin]

Had Jack moved closer to Ennis, it is still no gaurantee that Ennis would move in with him. Yes,jackster , he would be closer to Ennis but Ennis was paranoid in Riverton that people knew everything. Jack moving closer I feel would only aggravate Ennis's  dread further don't you think? The distance and isolation worked for Ennis though he missed Jack somethin awful, but the status quo was within Ennis's comfort zone, enough that Ennis could still function. He could'nt have Jack showing up on his job etc. out of the blue requiring him to expain the relationship. Eventually in Ennis's  paranoia, some one would be on to the whole arrangement and he'd have to explain Jack. With Jack's state of mind at this point he'd get careless and give the whole thing away. He no longer wanted to hide who he was. Ennis did.

[jackster]

Jack moving closer I feel would only aggravate Ennis's dread further don't you think?

Yeah, it MIGHT have, but we don't really know. We do know that when Jack showed up in Riverton after four years Ennis got so excited he kissed him out in the open. All I'm sayin' is with a little movement north, (say Casper or even Laramie someplace where it'd be easier to get into the mountains) on Jack's part, Ennis MIGHT also have reacted in a positive (and possibly very enthusiastic) manner. What did Jack have too lose? He was losing Ennis anyway, if it scared him off for good he'd be right back in Texas with that ol' Randall.
 

[jackster]

This connects with my post about Ennis wanting it to be this way:

I guess we're jus' gonna see it different. I don't see that Ennis "wanted" it this way, I just don't think Ennis understood any other way, "I don't wanna' be dead". - I think with a bit more illustration from Jack as to how this could work, and turn out better than Earl n' Rich, Ennis might have bought into it. Jack was workin' against a big pile of Ennis's childhood memories (hangups we'd call 'em) and a very vivid demonstration of how it would likely turn out. I'm just sayin' I don't think Jack used all the tools available to him to turn Ennis around.

[lamusica]

I'm not saying I would do something like this, but I know some people who play dirty in relationships and who would have forced Ennis's hand.  Jack could have just conveniently forgotten one of the mountain meetings with Ennis.  What would Ennis have done?  If Ennis really thought Jack could forget him or ignore him, what would his next step have been?  I think Ennis always thought Jack would be there on Ennis's terms, so why change?  There was no reason to change if you can get what you want without changing.

[manhattangirl]

lamusica,

What would be dirty about doing exactly that?  That's exactly the whole problem with Ennis and Jack, like the sun will rise, Jack would come back.  What if  he didn't?  I think Jack was so conditioned by Ennis, he would have never thought of doing just that, not show up at all.   

[tpe]

Had Jack moved closer to Ennis, it is still no gaurantee that Ennis would move in with him. Yes,jackster , he would be closer to Ennis but Ennis was paranoid in Riverton that people knew everything. Jack moving closer I feel would only aggravate Ennis's  dread further don't you think? The distance and isolation worked for Ennis though he missed Jack somethin awful, but the status quo was within Ennis's comfort zone, enough that Ennis could still function. He could'nt have Jack showing up on his job etc. out of the blue requiring him to expain the relationship. Eventually in Ennis's  paranoia, some one would be on to the whole arrangement and he'd have to explain Jack. With Jack's state of mind at this point he'd get careless and give the whole thing away. He no longer wanted to hide who he was. Ennis did.

Interesting way of defining the status quo: Ennis's comfort zone.  There is more than a grain of truth to this, IMO.

[tpe]

I guess we're jus' gonna see it different. I don't see that Ennis "wanted" it this way, I just don't think Ennis understood any other way, "I don't wanna' be dead". - I think with a bit more illustration from Jack as to how this could work, and turn out better than Earl n' Rich, Ennis might have bought into it. Jack was workin' against a big pile of Ennis's childhood memories (hangups we'd call 'em) and a very vivid demonstration of how it would likely turn out. I'm just sayin' I don't think Jack used all the tools available to him to turn Ennis around.

Hello jackster.  That's ok.  I see your point in any case.  Perhaps Ennis did think there was no other way.  But perhaps Jack might have interpreted things less permanently, which accounted for his not losing hope over the years that he could turn Ennis around eventually...

[tpe]

I'm not saying I would do something like this, but I know some people who play dirty in relationships and who would have forced Ennis's hand.  Jack could have just conveniently forgotten one of the mountain meetings with Ennis.  What would Ennis have done?  If Ennis really thought Jack could forget him or ignore him, what would his next step have been?  I think Ennis always thought Jack would be there on Ennis's terms, so why change?  There was no reason to change if you can get what you want without changing.

THat's a good question.  It would seem from Ennis's actions prior to the November meeting that Ennis would try to estanlish communication with Jack and inquire as to the reason fro his absence.  I would think that if Jack had persisited, there may have been a chance that Ennis would have gone to Texas, if need be, to see what was going on.  But a part of me says that Ennis would have probably nursed his hurt and let things be, breaking communication with Jack, even if itr hurt: "If you can't fix it, you've got to stand it".  I think many times, it never occured to Ennis that he could sometimes try to fix it...

[aintfoolin]

 I agree with this. Jack did not use all the weapons in his arsenal to convince Ennis to see it his way . This last post is one example. Perhaps Jack should have not shown up just to *test* Ennis , to see what response he he'd get from Ennis. The question is : could Jack do this though,? or would his fear of loosing Ennis weigh so heavily on him that he just could'nt stay away or not have the communication with him? I think this may have worked, as Ennis did call Jack's house after his death. he apparently had Jack's home phone no. I think He'd have called at least to find out if Jack was safe. Since a pattern had been established  with  Jack, then not showing up would fill Ennis with a sense of fear. He'd call first, and this would be the time for Jack to explain to Ennis that he was not going to play this game anymore.  Was not going to drive one more mile to meet him , only to be rejected . I think one of two things would result from this. 1. Ennis would totally withdraw, or he'd give in to Jack. Either way Jack could move on with his life....with Ennis or with Randall. Sadly we'll never know. He deserved so much better than the status quo.