Tuck Everlasting

by

Natalie Babbitt

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Tuck Everlasting makes teaching easy.
Jesse is Angus and Mae's younger son. He's 17 and Winnie is immediately attracted to him when she comes across him drinking from the stream in her family's wood. Of all the Tucks, Jesse seems the most relieved to finally share the secret with Winnie. After he, Miles, and Mae tell Winnie their story, he suggests that life should be enjoyed and remarks that he's seen all sorts of things and, because he's immortal, will get to see much more. He behaves as though he reciprocates Winnie's feelings; he shows off for her and gives her a small flask of the brook's water so that when Winnie is 17, she can drink it and join him in enjoying life eternally. He also suggests that he'd like to get married. Mae, however, explains that because of Jesse's youth, he's not able to settle down. He moves around constantly and works all manner of jobs, from bartending to manual labor. Jesse is, according to his parents, very sad when Winnie never drinks the water and joins him.

Jesse Tuck Quotes in Tuck Everlasting

The Tuck Everlasting quotes below are all either spoken by Jesse Tuck or refer to Jesse Tuck. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Purpose of Living Theme Icon
).
Chapter Six Quotes

Winnie had often been haunted by visions of what it would be like to be kidnapped. But none of her visions had been like this, with her kidnappers just as alarmed as she was herself. She had always pictured a troupe of burly men with long black moustaches who would tumble her into a blanket and bear her off like a sack of potatoes while she pleaded for mercy. But, instead, it was they, Mae Tuck and Miles and Jesse, who were pleading.

Related Characters: Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck, Miles Tuck, Jesse Tuck
Page Number: 31-32
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Eight Quotes

"Just think of all the things we've seen in the world! All the things we're going to see!"

"That kind of talk'll make her want to rush back and drink a gallon of the stuff," warned Miles. "There's a whole lot more to it than Jesse Tuck's good times, you know."

"Oh, stuff," said Jesse with a shrug. "We might as well enjoy it, long as we can't change it. You don't have to be such a parson all the time."

"I'm not being a parson," said Miles. "I just think you ought to take it more serious."

Related Characters: Miles Tuck (speaker), Jesse Tuck (speaker), Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck
Page Number: 43
Explanation and Analysis:

But she felt there was nothing to be afraid of, not really. For they seemed gentle. Gentle and--in a strange way--childlike. They made her feel old. And the way they spoke to her, the way they looked at her, made her feel special. Important. It was a warm, spreading feeling, entirely new. She liked it, and in spite of their story, she liked them, too--especially Jesse.

Related Characters: Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck, Miles Tuck, Jesse Tuck
Page Number: 44
Explanation and Analysis:

Closing the gate on her oldest fears as she had closed the gate of her own fenced yard, she discovered the wings she'd always wished she had. And all at once she was elated. Where were the terrors she'd been told she should expect? She could not recognize them anywhere. The sweet earth opened out its wide four corners to her like the petals of a flower ready to be picked, and it shimmered with light and possibility till she was dizzy with it. Her mother's voice, the feel of home, receded for the moment, and her thoughts turned forward. Why, she, too, might live forever in this remarkable world she was only just discovering!

Related Characters: Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck, Miles Tuck, Jesse Tuck
Related Symbols: The Fence
Page Number: 44-45
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Ten Quotes

"Jesse, now, he don't ever seem too settled in himself. Course, he's young." She stopped and smiled. "That sounds funny, don't it? Still, it's true, just the same."

Related Characters: Mae Tuck (speaker), Winnie Foster, Jesse Tuck
Page Number: 53
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Twenty-Two Quotes

"I mean, what'll they say to you after, when they find out?"

"I don't know," said Winnie, "but it doesn't matter. Tell your father I want to help. I have to help. If it wasn't for me, there wouldn't have been any trouble in the first place."

Related Characters: Winnie Foster (speaker), Jesse Tuck (speaker), Mae Tuck, Angus Tuck, Winnie's Mother, Winnie's Father
Related Symbols: The Fence
Page Number: 115
Explanation and Analysis:
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Jesse Tuck Quotes in Tuck Everlasting

The Tuck Everlasting quotes below are all either spoken by Jesse Tuck or refer to Jesse Tuck. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Purpose of Living Theme Icon
).
Chapter Six Quotes

Winnie had often been haunted by visions of what it would be like to be kidnapped. But none of her visions had been like this, with her kidnappers just as alarmed as she was herself. She had always pictured a troupe of burly men with long black moustaches who would tumble her into a blanket and bear her off like a sack of potatoes while she pleaded for mercy. But, instead, it was they, Mae Tuck and Miles and Jesse, who were pleading.

Related Characters: Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck, Miles Tuck, Jesse Tuck
Page Number: 31-32
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Eight Quotes

"Just think of all the things we've seen in the world! All the things we're going to see!"

"That kind of talk'll make her want to rush back and drink a gallon of the stuff," warned Miles. "There's a whole lot more to it than Jesse Tuck's good times, you know."

"Oh, stuff," said Jesse with a shrug. "We might as well enjoy it, long as we can't change it. You don't have to be such a parson all the time."

"I'm not being a parson," said Miles. "I just think you ought to take it more serious."

Related Characters: Miles Tuck (speaker), Jesse Tuck (speaker), Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck
Page Number: 43
Explanation and Analysis:

But she felt there was nothing to be afraid of, not really. For they seemed gentle. Gentle and--in a strange way--childlike. They made her feel old. And the way they spoke to her, the way they looked at her, made her feel special. Important. It was a warm, spreading feeling, entirely new. She liked it, and in spite of their story, she liked them, too--especially Jesse.

Related Characters: Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck, Miles Tuck, Jesse Tuck
Page Number: 44
Explanation and Analysis:

Closing the gate on her oldest fears as she had closed the gate of her own fenced yard, she discovered the wings she'd always wished she had. And all at once she was elated. Where were the terrors she'd been told she should expect? She could not recognize them anywhere. The sweet earth opened out its wide four corners to her like the petals of a flower ready to be picked, and it shimmered with light and possibility till she was dizzy with it. Her mother's voice, the feel of home, receded for the moment, and her thoughts turned forward. Why, she, too, might live forever in this remarkable world she was only just discovering!

Related Characters: Winnie Foster, Mae Tuck, Miles Tuck, Jesse Tuck
Related Symbols: The Fence
Page Number: 44-45
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Ten Quotes

"Jesse, now, he don't ever seem too settled in himself. Course, he's young." She stopped and smiled. "That sounds funny, don't it? Still, it's true, just the same."

Related Characters: Mae Tuck (speaker), Winnie Foster, Jesse Tuck
Page Number: 53
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Twenty-Two Quotes

"I mean, what'll they say to you after, when they find out?"

"I don't know," said Winnie, "but it doesn't matter. Tell your father I want to help. I have to help. If it wasn't for me, there wouldn't have been any trouble in the first place."

Related Characters: Winnie Foster (speaker), Jesse Tuck (speaker), Mae Tuck, Angus Tuck, Winnie's Mother, Winnie's Father
Related Symbols: The Fence
Page Number: 115
Explanation and Analysis: