with pleasant sounds." The sounds of nature drown out the sounds of her anxious thoughts and give her the inner strength she needs to persevere. Although she often feels alone, the sounds of nature keep her company throughout her journey.

Ree also listens closely to how birds interact with one another, and she learns about other forms of communication from them. Her interest in such animal relationships suggests that she sees nature as a society separate from her own. This shows the reader how much Ree longs to escape her own society and to live in a different one that is more calm and free.

In accordance with eNotes guidelines, students should only ask one question per post, and Educators can't do homework for the students. That being said, I am happy to help get you on the right track!

Let's focus on comparing and contrasting Ree from Winter's Bone and Catherine from Proof. At first glance, it seems that these two live very different lives. Catherine is twenty-five, with a brilliant mathematician father. Ree is sixteen, with a father who cooks crystal meth. While their fathers are different, both of the girls are suffering from the absence of their fathers. Ree's father is absent for the whole novel, which causes conflict because his missed court date means that Ree will lose the house and the land. Ree must then prove that her father is dead in order to keep her home. Catherine's father appears on stage, but it is revealed that he has died. He appears only in flashback and as part of Catherine's imagination. His death causes conflict because Catherine's sister Claire wants to sell the house and have Catherine come to New York with her. It also means that her father isn't there to confirm Catherine wrote the proof.

Ree and Catherine both set out to prove something in their stories. Ree must prove that her father is dead, and Catherine tries to convince the others that she wrote the proof Hal found. You can think about how both characters try to achieve this. Do any characters stand in the way of the protagonists' pursuit of their goals?

Let's think about their relationships with other characters. Catherine has a stronger relationship with her father than Ree does. Catherine takes care of her mentally ill father, and Ree takes care of her siblings and mentally ill mother. Claire, although seeming to stand in opposition to Catherine at times, did take care of Catherine at one point by helping to pay for her education. Claire also is trying to help Catherine by bringing her to New York.

Catherine has some amount of education and is smart enough to write the proof. Ree is younger and not as educated, but perhaps she has a different kind of intelligence. What skills does Ree demonstrate in the novel?

Finally, it may help you to list out character traits that you would assign to Ree and Catherine. Is there any overlap? You can also find quotes that support these character traits by looking at how the girls interact with other characters.