A Land More Kind than Home

Adelaide is the first character the novel introduces as well as one of its narrators. She is an elderly woman who has lived in Marshall for nearly all of her life. She is independent and self-sufficient and is a person whom the community relies on in a variety of ways. She is warm, caring, and nurturing as well as protective of the children whom she mentors in her Sunday school class. Because she has lived in Marshall for many years, she is especially well positioned to observe how the community has changed as a result of Carson Chambliss’s presence and influence. As an independent thinker, she is instantly wary of him, skeptical of his motivations and recognizing The Influence of Religious Fervor in his popularity among the congregants. Yet Adelaide never fails to be respectful in her interactions with Chambliss, recognizing that he has a right to practice his religious beliefs. Her fierce need to protect the community’s children, however, motivates her to prevent them from attending Sunday school classes inside the church building. Her belief that she can practice her religion outside in the natural world is a controversial one, but Adelaide is firm in her convictions.

Adelaide attributes her strength and honorable character to the great-aunt who raised her; Adelaide notes that her aunt was a healer but that she never envisioned inheriting her aunt’s gifts. Nevertheless, Adelaide serves her community as a self-taught midwife who is also knowledgeable about natural remedies. In this way, she serves as a foil to Chambliss, who also considers himself a healer and whose malign influence on the community differs greatly from Adelaide’s.

The county sheriff and the last of the novel’s three narrators, Barefield is straightforward and no-nonsense. He is firm and direct in his approach to those he deals with in his job but not cruel or prideful. He carries out his responsibilities in a respectful manner and does not draw attention to himself. For instance, throughout his investigation of Stump’s death, he proceeds with caution and care despite being quite certain that Chambliss is largely to blame for the death. 

Unlike many others in the town, Barefield evaluates Chambliss and his intentions objectively. He recognizes the longing that draws many people to Chambliss’s religious fervor, but though he is critical of the way that some people have eschewed logic in favor of adopting Chambliss’s extreme beliefs, he keeps these criticisms to himself, allowing others the freedom to make their own choices.

However, Barefield bears the scars of the traumatic death of his son, Jeff, who was electrocuted while working as a linesman. Though the details are not fully revealed in the novel, Barefield blames Jimmy Hall, Jeff’s supervisor, for neglecting to carry out his job responsibly due to his consumption of alcohol. When the incident occurred, Barefield nearly gave in to his anger and came close to killing Jimmy but refrained. Nevertheless, he harbors anger toward Jimmy, though he does not express it outwardly. 

Barefield’s interactions with the Hall family during the narrative present further demonstrate his sense of duty and his instinct for reading people, as he seeks to keep them safe and recognizes that their actions are motivated by pain. He does not deliberately kill Ben, instantly regretting the knee-jerk reaction. The novel implies that this act will permanently impact Barefield, though it ironically serves as a kind of payback for Jimmy inadvertently taking the life of Barefield’s son, setting the balance right. At the same time, it creates an unexpected connection between the two men, who are both left to grieve over a dead son.