Literary Analysis The Red Pony

A detailed Summary of Literary Analysis The Red Pony

The Red Pony, by John Steinbeck, consists of four separate but intertwined stories about a boy named Jody. These stories show how Jody began as a selfish, immature young child, and became a caring, responsible young man. Steinbeck used characters and events to teach Jody about life and death. He also used much imagery and foreshadowing to set the mood for the stories.

In the first story, "The Gift," Jody Tiflin was a typical ten-year-old boy who liked to sleep as late as possible and rush through his early morning chores before going to school. When he came home from school, he did his chores slowly and inefficiently. Billy Buck, the ranch hand, convinced Carl Tiflin, Jody's father, to buy a pony for Jody. Billy thought this would help Jody become more responsible. Carl & Billy went to the town of Salinas one day and surprised Jody with the pony the next morning. Jody named his new red pony Gabilan, after the mountains to the west about which he is so curious. Billy Buck taught Jody everything he knew about horses and Jody was responsible for taking care of Gabilan. He became more disciplined: He got up every morning by himself to feed Gabilan and he took more care when he was

The final chapter, "The Leader of the People," is the climax of The Red Pony. As Jody sat and watched a flock of pigeons in the black cypress tree, he threw a rock, making the whole flock of white birds rise from the tree (pg 74). This symbolized that even though there is death, the cypress tree, life, the white birds, goes on. Jody saw his father coming home with a letter announcing that Mrs. Tiflin's father would be arriving shortly. As Jody rushed to greet Grandfather, Carl complained about the old man because he always told the same stories over and over. Grandfather told of his westward travels in a wagon train, fighting the Indians, and braving the wilderness. Jody, however, loved to listen to Grandfather's stories. Carl jumped into the middle of one of the stories and told the old man that he needed to forget about the past. Grandfather thought that the younger generations were becoming soft, and forgetful about their founders. Mrs. Tiflin and Carl argued throughout this chapter because of Carl's resentment and irritation towards Grandfather. Again, as with the paisano, Carl felt that Grandfather was old and useless. The next day, Jody and Grandfather were talking, and Jody, seeing Grandfather's sadness, offered him a glass of lemonade. Mrs. Tiflin was surprised and proud to find Jody making the lemonade for her father and not even wanting some for himself (pg 92). Jody showed that he was maturing by giving up his activities to be with his grandfather, also proving that he had become less selfish and self-centered unlike his father. It was also important that Black Demon had determination and vigor, just as Jody had at the beginning of the book. He had become the symbol of the new generation. Jody, unlike his father, had no desire to leave the past behind him. He wanted to learn from the older generation in order to be prepared for life. He showed that the past and present could coexist.

The four short stories in The Red Pony have the themes of life, death, rebirth, loss, learning, and growing in common. They show how a young boy grew through his experiences and matured from a selfish boy to a responsible young man. Steinbeck used foreshadowing, imagery, and time to convey the message to the reader: Death is inevitable, but life will keep going.

(pg 62). This was foreshadowing what was to happen later in this chapter. Jody begged to be present for the delivery. After talking to Billy, Jody sat underneath the black cypress tree, the symbol of death, and imagined that Nellie would have a black stallion named Black Demon. When he found himself under the tree, he ran to the spring water and washed himself. Jody became weary from waiting, but Billy assured him that the colt would be safe and strong and that it would be a good colt. He did not make any promises to Jody, because of what had happened in the past. Late one evening in February, Billy told Jody that the colt was ready to be born. As they went into the barn, Billy sensed that something was

Some common words found in the essay are:
February Billy, Promise Jody, Jody Gabilan, Gabilan Gabilan, Billy Buck, Gabilan Jody, Gitano Easter, Black Demon, Pony Jody, Tifflin Jody, red pony, cypress tree, billy buck, black cypress, black cypress tree, spring water, billy promised, life death, care gabilan, spring water washed, story hot, cypress tree life, responsible taking, billy promised jody, hot summer day,

Approximate Word count = 2029
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English