Mike Hanlon and Jessica Hanlon

Mike Hanlon and Jessica Hanlon are mother and son. Jessica is a devout Baptist who sends Mike to the Neibolt Street Church School, a decision that isolates him from the other children in Derry and shapes his early social experience. She is fiercely protective of her son, a quality that emerges with particular force during the summer of 1958, when a series of child murders grips the town.

Protective Anxiety and Conflict with Will Hanlon

Jessica's anxiety about Mike's safety is acute. On one occasion when Mike is late for dinner, she chases him with a dishrag, screaming, "Don't you ever scare me like that!" Her fear is rooted in the real danger of the murders, but it also reflects a deeper, more personal dread. When Henry Bowers attacks Mike, smearing mud in his face and ears, Jessica is furious and demands that Will Hanlon call the police. "You put the law on him, Will Hanlon!" she cries, lapsing into a thick Texas patois. Will refuses, explaining that Chief Borton is a "jellyfish" who would not act against a white boy, and that Mike will have to learn to navigate a world where the word "nigger" follows him everywhere. Jessica is left mute and miserable, tears tracking down her face, as she asks, "Isn't there ever any getting away from it?"

The Church School and Social Isolation

Jessica's choice of the Neibolt Street Church School for Mike is a defining one. The school combines secular subjects with Bible drills and discussions on moral problems, and Mike finds it "okay." However, he is vaguely aware that he is missing a wider communication with kids his own age. He is willing to wait until high school for that, but the prospect makes him nervous because of his skin color. Jessica's religious devotion thus contributes to Mike's social isolation, even as it provides him with a structured moral framework.

A Mother's Love and a Son's Memory

Despite her anxieties, Jessica's love for Mike is deep and constant. She works hard on the family farm alongside her husband, and she is a presence in Mike's memories of his childhood. Years later, when Mike is an adult and writing his notebook, he recalls his mother's voice and her love. He remembers her standing in the kitchen doorway, wiping her hands on a dishtowel and pretending disgust at the family's old truck. He also remembers her grief when his father dies of cancer, and how they cried in each other's arms. Jessica Hanlon is a woman shaped by her faith, her fears, and her fierce, protective love for her son in a town that is often hostile to them both.