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Chris
Jason is a young white man of German descent; he’s Tracey and Hank’s son and Chris’s best friend. In 2008, Jason and Chris are 29 years old and have just been released from eight-year prison sentences for assaulting Oscar, a busboy at the bar in Reading, Pennsylvania, that they frequented. During the beating, Jason also inadvertently hit the bartender, Stan, leaving him with a traumatic brain injury. Back in 2000, before the assault, 21-year-old Jason is an irreverent troublemaker who works alongside Jason at Olstead’s Steel Tubing plant. Unlike Chris, he doesn’t have big dreams beyond getting a motorcycle—so when a lockout is instituted at Olstead’s, Jason feels utterly lost and consumed by violent rage over losing his job. Jason’s anger becomes racially motivated when Latinx temp workers are brought into Olstead’s (Oscar among them), and he ends up attacking Oscar at the encouragement of Tracey and her friend Jessie. After serving his sentence for this crime, Jason’s anger and hatred still hasn’t subsided—he acquired white supremacist tattoos in prison, and he lashes out with racial slurs at his African American parole officer, Evan. However, when he runs into Chris after they’re both released, the two hug and seem to be on good (if complicated) terms despite the fact that Chris is black. Evan encourages both Jason and Chris to let go of their shame and move on, and they take an initial step to do so by returning to the bar to make peace with Stan and Oscar. Hot-headed and passionate yet troubled and disaffected, Jason’s character represents the tendency for economic strife to exacerbate already present anger and racial tension, as well as the life-altering consequences of succumbing to such animosity.
Jason Quotes in Sweat
The Sweat quotes below are all either spoken by Jason or refer to Jason. 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:
).
Act 1, Scene 1
Quotes
CHRIS (Escalating emotions): I dunno. A couple minutes, and your whole life changes, that’s it. It’s gone. Every day I think about what if I hadn’t…You know…I run it and run it, a tape over and over again. What if. What if. What if. All night. In my head. I can’t turn it off. Reverend Duckett said, “Lean on God for forgiveness. Lean on God to find your way through the terrible storm.” I’m leaning into the wind, I’m fuckin’ leaning […] What we did was unforgiveable…
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Act 1, Scene 3
Quotes
JASON: […] But seriously, man, why didn’t you tell me?
CHRIS: Cuz—
JASON: Shit, I just kinda thought we’d retire and open a franchise together. We’re a team, you can’t leave!!
CHRIS: Yeah, I can.
JASON: What about me?
CHRIS: What about you?
JASON: You coulda told me.
CHRIS: Dude, it’s just something I gotta do.
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Act 2, Scene 1
Quotes
CYNTHIA: […] You know after everything. I wanna say that…
(Cynthia fights back emotions.)
I’m sorry.
CHRIS: For what?
CYNTHIA: It’s just, I shoulda…
(Chris places his arms around Cynthia.)
CHRIS: C’mon. C’mon. I don't want this to be a big deal. Tell me about what’s been going on. You hear from the old gang? Tracey?
CYNTHIA: Fuck her. After what went down. We don’t really—
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Act 2, Scene 6
Quotes
JASON: […] Eleven dollars an hour? No thank you. They’ll work us down to nothing if we let ‘em. “Jacking ain’t for softies!” But they know they can always find somebody willing to get their hands sweaty. And they’re right. There will always be someone who’ll step in, unless we say NO!
STAN: Look. Olstead is a prick. If he was here I wouldn’t stop you. In fact I’d hold him down for you to give him a proper beating, but Oscar…he’s another story.
[…]
JASON: […] All I’m saying is that he needs to understand the price of that dinner he’s putting on his table.
STAN (Shouts): What the fuck do you want him to do? Huh? It ain’t his fault. Talk to Olstead, his cronies. Fucking Wall Street. Oscar ain’t getting rich off your misery.
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Act 2, Scene 7
Quotes
EVAN: I’ve seen enough guys in your situation to know that over time it’s…it’s crippling. I’m not a therapist, I’m not the right dude to talk to about any of this. But what I do know, is that it’s not a productive emotion. Most folks think it’s the guilt or rage that destroys us in the end, but I know from experience that it’s shame that eats us away until we disappear. You put in your time. But look here, we been talking, and we can keep talking—but whatcha gonna do about where you’re at right now?
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Get the entire Sweat LitChart as a printable PDF.
Jason Quotes in Sweat
The Sweat quotes below are all either spoken by Jason or refer to Jason. 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:
).
Act 1, Scene 1
Quotes
CHRIS (Escalating emotions): I dunno. A couple minutes, and your whole life changes, that’s it. It’s gone. Every day I think about what if I hadn’t…You know…I run it and run it, a tape over and over again. What if. What if. What if. All night. In my head. I can’t turn it off. Reverend Duckett said, “Lean on God for forgiveness. Lean on God to find your way through the terrible storm.” I’m leaning into the wind, I’m fuckin’ leaning […] What we did was unforgiveable…
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Act 1, Scene 3
Quotes
JASON: […] But seriously, man, why didn’t you tell me?
CHRIS: Cuz—
JASON: Shit, I just kinda thought we’d retire and open a franchise together. We’re a team, you can’t leave!!
CHRIS: Yeah, I can.
JASON: What about me?
CHRIS: What about you?
JASON: You coulda told me.
CHRIS: Dude, it’s just something I gotta do.
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Act 2, Scene 1
Quotes
CYNTHIA: […] You know after everything. I wanna say that…
(Cynthia fights back emotions.)
I’m sorry.
CHRIS: For what?
CYNTHIA: It’s just, I shoulda…
(Chris places his arms around Cynthia.)
CHRIS: C’mon. C’mon. I don't want this to be a big deal. Tell me about what’s been going on. You hear from the old gang? Tracey?
CYNTHIA: Fuck her. After what went down. We don’t really—
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Act 2, Scene 6
Quotes
JASON: […] Eleven dollars an hour? No thank you. They’ll work us down to nothing if we let ‘em. “Jacking ain’t for softies!” But they know they can always find somebody willing to get their hands sweaty. And they’re right. There will always be someone who’ll step in, unless we say NO!
STAN: Look. Olstead is a prick. If he was here I wouldn’t stop you. In fact I’d hold him down for you to give him a proper beating, but Oscar…he’s another story.
[…]
JASON: […] All I’m saying is that he needs to understand the price of that dinner he’s putting on his table.
STAN (Shouts): What the fuck do you want him to do? Huh? It ain’t his fault. Talk to Olstead, his cronies. Fucking Wall Street. Oscar ain’t getting rich off your misery.
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Page Number and Citation:
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Act 2, Scene 7
Quotes
EVAN: I’ve seen enough guys in your situation to know that over time it’s…it’s crippling. I’m not a therapist, I’m not the right dude to talk to about any of this. But what I do know, is that it’s not a productive emotion. Most folks think it’s the guilt or rage that destroys us in the end, but I know from experience that it’s shame that eats us away until we disappear. You put in your time. But look here, we been talking, and we can keep talking—but whatcha gonna do about where you’re at right now?
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