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Denise
Babette’s son, and the youngest of the children living with her and Jack. Wilder, who behaves like a good-natured toddler, can’t speak more than twenty-five words, a fact that both worries and pleases Jack. Both he and Babette delight in spending time with the effectively nonverbal child, finding his innocence and curiosity infectious and soothing. Murray is particularly interested in Wilder’s impressionable age and the fact that the boy is growing up awash in consumerism.
Wilder Quotes in White Noise
The White Noise quotes below are all either spoken by Wilder or refer to Wilder. 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:
).
Chapter 16 Quotes
We looked at each other. Behind that dopey countenance, a complex intelligence operated. […] The inconsolable crying went on. I let it wash over me, like rain in sheets. I entered it, in a sense. I let it fall and tumble across my face and chest. I began to think he had disappeared inside this wailing noise and if I could join him in his lost and suspended place we might together perform some reckless wonder of intelligibility. I let it break across my body. It might not be so terrible, I thought, to have to sit here for four more hours, with the motor running and the heater on, listening to this uniform lament.
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Explanation and Analysis:
In this passage, Jack observes Wilder, who has been crying for hours on end with no signs of stopping. As he does with most things, Jack looks for meaning and significance in Wilder’s “inconsolable” sobbing, letting it “wash over [him]” and delighting in its raw and nearly mystical effect. This experience recalls the idea of white noise, an indiscriminate sound that can almost become meditative, just like the steady hum of the expressway below Jack and Babette’s bedroom window at night. For somebody so obsessed with being in control—of his identity, of his fears, of his body—Jack exhibits a rare Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitati
We were halfway home when the crying stopped. It stopped suddenly, without a change in tone and intensity. Babette said nothing, I kept my eyes on the road. He sat between us, looking into the radio. I waited for Babette to glance at me behind his back, over his head, to show relief, happiness, hopeful suspense. I didn’t know how I felt and wanted a clue. But she looked straight ahead as if fearful that any change in the sensitive texture of sound, movement, expression would cause the crying to break out again.
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Wilder’s state of being after his prolific crying stint is, in this passage, perceived by Jack as extremely delicate. He senses Babette’s belief that even the slightest movement could send the child back into hysterics while also seeming to adopt a similar sensitivity as the boy himself, as illustrated by his confession, “I didn’t know how I felt and wanted a clue.” This statement shows the extent to which Jack depends on Babette; confounded by Wilder’s sudden silence, he looks to Babette to tell him how he should feel, exhibiting a dependency first observable in his earlier statement that he Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecat
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Wilder Character Timeline in White Noise
The timeline below shows where the character Wilder appears in White Noise. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2
...procession of station wagons, they are joined by three of their children, Denise, Steffie, and Wilder, and the group sets about quietly preparing their own lunches. Denise, who polices Babette’s health,...
(full context)
Chapter 9
Jack and Babette go with Denise, Steffie, and Wilder to the supermarket. Again, they bump into Murray, who predictably latches onto Babette and sings...
(full context)
Chapter 16
That day, Wilder starts crying at two in the afternoon and doesn’t stop for almost seven hours. He...
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Chapter 20
Murray comes over to talk to Steffie, Denise, and Wilder as part of his fascination with what he calls “the society of kids.” When Babette...
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Chapter 33
While sleeping, Jack senses a presence. He opens his eyes to find Wilder standing inches from his face, staring at him. He gets out of bed and follows...
(full context)
Chapter 35
...sweat suit at all hours of the day and spending large amounts of time with Wilder, which is the only activity that seems to alleviate her fear of death. Jack can’t...
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Chapter 40
...same day, Jack and Babette learn from two old women who watched it unfold that Wilder took his tricycle beyond the Gladneys’ property, past a guard rail, along a walkway, and...
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