The Wolf Tail: Liberation and Animal Instinct in 'Laws of Nature'
What Is the Wolf Tail?
In Enid Shomer's story "Laws of Nature" (Chapter 10 of Tourist Season), the wolf tail is a literal, physical appendage that Helen Hornstein discovers at the base of her spine one morning. It emerges as the final, unmistakable sign of her ongoing reverse-aging process—a process that has already darkened her hair, firmed her skin, and slimmed her waist. The tail is bushy, sleek, and muscular, capable of coiling and lashing as if it possesses its own will. Helen strokes it "absently, now proudly," and the tail seems to respond with a life of its own.
The tail appears only in the final pages of the story, but its presence is prepared for by the Mexican housekeeper Benita, who earlier explained that in her village older women often turn into wolves or pigs. The wolf tail, then, is not merely a bizarre symptom of Helen's physical youth; it is a metamorphic organ that signals her departure from human society.
Where and How the Wolf Tail Recurrs
The wolf tail is a singular occurrence within the story—it appears at the climactic moment when Helen, having been abandoned by her husband Claude and rejected by a world that made her invisible, decides to leave her human life behind. The tail sprouts overnight, just before her scheduled flight to Seattle to visit her son Gregory and his family. As she rummages through her closet for travel clothes, she finds nothing that will accommodate the bushy appendage. This practical obstacle underscores the tail's irreversibility: there is no going back to being a normal grandmother.
The tail does not appear in other stories of Tourist Season, but it resonates thematically across the collection. Many characters—Iris, Sheila, Garland, Frieda—undergo radical changes or leave their old lives behind. Helen's wolf tail is the most overtly fantastical expression of that pattern.
How the Meaning of the Wolf Tail Changes
At first, the tail is a shocking anomaly—a physical impossibility that confirms the reality of Helen's transformation. Her family, already disturbed by her younger appearance, would likely be horrified. But Helen's reaction evolves from surprise to acceptance to pride. The tail becomes a symbol of liberation from human constraints: the burdens of marriage, motherhood, social invisibility, and the relentless pressure to age gracefully.
The tail also represents a return to instinct. Helen imagines wolf pups growing quickly, the dam giving her all and being pregnant again in a year or two. She contrasts this with the "prickly love" of human mothers. The tail frees her from the emotional weight of graduations, weddings, and the blood tie that dissolves when children become adults. In this sense, the tail is the physical manifestation of a release from loss.
Additionally, the tail is linked to the theme of invisibility that Helen experienced after turning sixty. As a crone, she was ignored, her comments dismissed, her presence negligible. Now, as a wolf, she can be seen—but on her own terms. The tail gives her a new kind of visibility, one that is primal and powerful.
Relevant Character and Theme Connections
Helen Hornstein
Helen is the only character who physically transforms. Her journey is from invisible older woman to vital young wolf. The tail is the final step in her escape from a life that had no place for her. She leaves behind her son, daughter-in-law, grandchildren, and her unfaithful husband Claude. The tail allows her to say goodbye without the "prickly love" she once endured.
Benita, the Housekeeper
Benita provides the cultural framework that normalizes Helen's transformation. She matter-of-factly explains that in her Mexican village, older women often turn into wolves or pigs. This shifts the reader's understanding: the wolf tail is not a freakish occurrence but part of a natural, magical law. Benita's calm acceptance contrasts sharply with the horror of Helen's family and doctor.
Themes
- Identity and Transformation: The tail embodies Helen's radical identity shift from human grandmother to wolf. It is the outward sign of an inward change.
- Aging and Invisibility: The tail reverses the erasure of old age. Instead of fading away, Helen gains a new, animal presence.
- Marriage and Relationships: Claude leaves Helen because he cannot cope with her de-aging. The tail finalizes her independence from him.
- Secrets and Guilt: Helen must keep her transformation secret from her family, who would not understand. The tail is a secret she cannot hide.
- Travel and Tourism as Metaphor: Helen's planned trip to Seattle becomes a one-way journey into the wild. She becomes a tourist in her own life, then a permanent resident of the animal world.
4 Study Questions with Answers
Question 1: What does the wolf tail represent for Helen at the end of "Laws of Nature"?
Answer: The wolf tail symbolizes Helen's liberation from human social expectations and emotional bonds. It allows her to shed the grief of abandonment, invisibility, and motherhood's demands. Rather than a deformity, it is a badge of freedom. The tail gives her a new identity rooted in instinct rather than societal roles.
Question 2: How does Benita's cultural perspective shape the meaning of the wolf tail?
Answer: Benita's casual explanation—that older women in her Mexican village routinely transform into wolves or pigs—recontextualizes Helen's experience as natural rather than pathological. Without Benita, the tail might seem a bizarre hallucination. Her perspective invites the reader to consider the transformation as a kind of cultural logic, a magical realism grounded in folk belief.
Question 3: In what way does the wolf tail connect to Helen's earlier experience of invisibility?
Answer: Before her reverse-aging, Helen felt invisible: students ignored her, her comments went unremarked, and she was treated as if she did not exist. The tail reverses this erasure. It makes her impossible to ignore and gives her a physical presence that demands attention. The tail transforms her from a negligible crone into a wild, visible creature.
Question 4: Why does Helen choose to leave her human life behind rather than seek a medical or psychological explanation?
Answer: Helen has already lost her husband to an affair, her youth to time, and her relevance to society. The tail offers an escape from a life that had become hollow. Her family is disturbed by her changes, and society has no place for a de-aged woman with a tail. Rather than endure further rejection, Helen embraces the animal world, where the laws of nature are simpler: wolf pups grow quickly, and there are no wrenching farewells.
Further Exploration
For more on the themes of this story, see the analysis of identity and transformation, aging and invisibility, and travel as metaphor. You can also read about Helen and other key characters in the collection.