Chapter 11

Summary

Pony has to stay in bed a whole week to recuperate. To pass the time, he goes through Soda's yearbooks, where he comes across a picture of Bob. He is reminded that he will soon have a hearing about Bob's death. Randy also comes to see him and talks about the hearing. Feeling he has let down his father by getting mixed up in gang rivalry, Randy has promised to set the record straight and speak the truth at the hearing. He tells Pony not to worry, for Johnny was the one who had the knife and killed Bob. Pony, however, in his confused state, insists that he had the knife, that he killed Bob, and that Johnny is not dead.

Hearing that Pony is upset, Darry comes in and asks Randy to leave. When they are outside, Pony hears Darry telling Randy not to speak to Pony about Johnny, as he is still mentally and emotionally unstable. When Darry returns to the room, he scolds Pony for smoking in bed. He also tells him to clean his room, for it is a mess. In talking, Darry refers to Pony as "little buddy," a term of endearment usually reserved for Soda. Pony is happy that Darry now seems to care about him; he promises to be more careful.

Notes

While going through Soda's yearbook, Pony comes across a picture of Bob and tries to analyze the type of person he was. He immediately thinks of him as a typical Soc, who believed he was superior just because he lived on the west side of town. Then he adds that Bob was "a reckless, hot-tempered boy, cocky, and scared stiff at the same time." He thinks about Bob's parents and assumes that they hate the Greasers for killing their son. Pony prefers their hate to their pity. He then thinks about the hearing about Bob's murder; it is coming in the near future.

When Randy comes to visit him, Pony refuses to accept that Johnny is really dead. He even claims that he, not Johnny, killed Bob. He is still severely traumatized over the events of the last week and cannot think straight. Darry, still the protective older brother, enters the room and asks Randy to leave.

Table of Contents | Downloadable/Printable Version