In Chapter 8, Tolitha takes the children to shop for a coffin with her. At the funeral parlor, she lies down in a coffin and tricks Ruby Blankenship into thinking she is dead, then raises up from the coffin, climbs out, and runs away with the children, leaving Ruby in hysterics. In Chapter 14, Amos carries out his Good Friday tradition of imitating Jesus’ walk to Calvary by dressing in a robe and sandals and carrying a cross through the streets of Colleton.
Chapter 8 shows Tolitha’s awareness of her mortality but also her youthful spirit. It seems that she is trying to convince herself that she is old and about to die. She argues that even though she seems healthy for her age, she knows she is going to suffer heart failure soon because a gypsy told her so. However, she is very playful and seems young at heart. Her plot to trick Ruby Blankenship and her fit of hysterical laughter that followed aren’t typical behavior of a frail old lady. The question is: Does Tolitha want to die? It wouldn’t seem natural for her to die anytime soon, but she is determined for it happen. We hope that as we continue reading, Conroy will give us more information about Tolitha and her opinion of death.
Amos and Tolitha are complete opposites, and it’s not clear why they married each other. Amos is a quiet, religious man who makes his living selling Bibles. Tolitha is a wild, adventurous quasi-alcoholic who travels the world and has many husbands without telling Amos. However, it seems that they love each other despite not understanding each other’s way of life. They are also very loving, and it’s not clear why Henry turned out the way he did when his parents were so kind (see Character Study).
In Chapter 9, Tom beats up Todd Newbury for saying bad things about the Wingo family. This chapter establishes the hatred between the Newburys and the Wingos. In Chapter 11, Lila is determined to become a member of the Colleton League and works on creating a recipe to submit to their cookbook. When the Colleton League not only rejects her recipe but then treats the Wingos in a way that embarrasses Lila, the children wait until the Newburys go to Barbados
Lila is very concerned with keeping up appearances. She is embarrassed that her family is poor, and she wants to look high-class. She hates the Newburys, but she listens to Isabel Newbury and stops wearing flowers in her hair, tries to join the Colleton League with Isabel, and ends up marrying Reese Newbury in order to raise her social standing. Her social status matters to her more than most things, so she puts all of her time into trying to improve it and makes some unwise decisions along the way.
These chapters also show how loving and close-knit the family can be, with the exception of Henry. As an adult, Tom hates his mother for what she has done, including some terrible things he hasn’t revealed to us yet, but as a child, he is very supportive of his mother and loves her deeply. Every time Lila is embarrassed or insulted by the Newburys or the Colleton League, her children come to her defense and encourage her. They are incredibly loving and supportive of their mother in these chapters, which shows that whatever she did to make them hate her must have been really serious.
In Chapter 10, Tom meets Bernard, Dr. Lowenstein’s son, and begins teaching him to play football. In Chapter 12, Tom talks to Dr. Lowenstein about Bernard and his training.
Conroy makes a lot of statements about parenting and the parents’ influence on their children in this book, mainly because it is based on his own childhood experiences. Dr. Lowenstein, her husband, and Bernard are an interesting example of parent-child relationships and long-term effects of bad parenting. Dr. Lowenstein had explained earlier that she never got too involved in Bernard’s life because she was afraid she would mess him up. Tom describes Bernard as “neglected” as says that Bernard’s childhood has made him bitter and uncommunicative. Tom feels some disrespect towards Dr. Lowenstein and her husband because of the way have raised Bernard.
Tom seems determined to improve Dr. Lowenstein’s relationship with her son. He scolds her for not showing any interest in football. He then starts teaching her the basics of football so that she can understand Bernard’s interest and follow the games he plays. It is interesting that Tom is trying so hard to help her, as she is a psychiatrist, and even though Tom isn’t her patient, it would make more sense for her to help him. But even though Tom's problems seem more horrific, Dr. Lowenstein's are no less legitimate. Tom and Dr. Lowenstein are able to help each other because they each represent one side of the issue: Tom understands what it's like to have bad parents, and Dr. Lowenstein understands how difficult parenting is. Their relationship strengthens the theme that everybody has problems, even those who seem to lead perfect lives.
In Chapter 13, we learn about Henry’s stupid attempts at making money. The biggest one is purchasing a gas station and a tiger to go with it. After six months, the gas station closes. The family has lost a lot of money, including the children’s college funds, and is left with only a vicious tiger.
We’re not really sure what the tiger represents, but we know it has some significance because Savannah
This chapter is also important to Luke's characterization. In the way he deals with the tiger, he is presented as more passionate than we have seen him before. Before reading this chapter, we saw Luke as physical and unintelligent, but the tiger provides him with a setting to express his emotions more deeply.
This chapter is also important to Luke's characterization. In the way he deals with the tiger, he is presented as more passionate than we have seen him before. Before reading this chapter, we saw Luke as physical and unintelligent, but the tiger provides him with a setting to express his emotions more deeply.
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