One thing I've been trying to figure out is the symbolic significance of the cigarettes. At one point I kind of thought that his nicotine withdrawal (his hands trembling) was being compared to the idea of the sunken place in the sense that for a moment he loses control of his body. The flipside of that is he's actually smoking the cigarettes to remain calm and retain control of his emotional state which imo is why Rose's mother took that from him. After she hypnotizes him Rose is the only respite he finds in the town and obviously he's being manipulated by her.
On the other hand, the extent that both of Rose's parents comment on his nicotine addiction ("Do you smoke in front of my daughter?") leads me to think that maybe there's something else to it.