I notice how it takes a lazy man, a man that hates moving, to get set on moving once he does get started off, the same as when he was set on staying still, like it aint the moving he hates so much as the starting and the stopping. And like he would be kind of proud of whatever come up to make the moving or the setting still look hard. He set there on the wagon hunched up, blinking, listening to us tell about how quick the bridge went and how high the water was, and I be durn if he didn't act like he was proud of it, like he had made the river rise himself.
The excerpt explores the paradox of a man's attitude toward movement and stillness. It highlights how a person who usually dislikes exertion can unexpectedly become motivated once he begins to take action. The focus isn’t merely on movement itself, but on the challenges of initiating or halting that movement, indicating that the struggle lies more in the transition than in the physical act.
This observation reveals a deeper commentary on pride and perception. The man, who initially appears disinterested, seems to take pride in the difficulty of others' experiences, suggesting a complex relationship with effort and accomplishment. He listens intently to tales of others' struggles, showing that even in his inertia, there is an element of pride in the challenges faced by others, as if he were somehow connected to their experiences of movement and hardship.
