Short Fiction · Chapter
A Wild Thing explained
In the Kentucky mountains, Jemina Tantrum, a sixteen-year-old mountain girl, works at the family whiskey still.
What happens
In the Kentucky mountains, Jemina Tantrum, a sixteen-year-old mountain girl, works at the family whiskey still. A man from the settlements, vibrant and refined, appears and asks for directions to the Tantrum cabin. Jemina, who has never known civilization, is entranced by him.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
Val reaches his emotional and psychological peak in this passage as he confronts the painful gap between his r…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Rebellion and Nonconformity
Jemina Tantrum's family shuns civilization, brewing whiskey in the mountains, embodying a wild, nonconformist lifestyle.
Characters to notice
- Jim Mather
The man from the settlements, vibrant and youthful, who asks for directions to the Tantrum cabin.
Key passages
“She raised her foot and pointed her big toe toward the woods. 'Thar in the cabing behind those thar pines. Old Tantrum air my old man.'”
She lifted her foot and used her big toe to point toward the woods, saying that her father was in the cabin behind the pines.
Jemina's rustic gesture and dialect highlight her mountain upbringing.
“He was fairly vibrant with youth and personality. As he walked along he whistled and sang and turned handsprings and flapjacks, breathing in the fresh, cool air of the mountains.”
He radiated youthful energy, whistling, singing, and doing acrobatics as he walked, enjoying the mountain air.
The man's lively behavior contrasts with Jemina's rough, laborious life.
