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Chapter 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Little Britches, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fathers, Sons, and Growing Up
Honesty and Pride
Work and Society
Community, Resources, and Conflict
Home and the American West
Summary
Analysis
Bessie Aultland takes Ralph and Grace to school. Despite Bessie’s warnings, Ralph’s mother has Ralph wear his Buster Brown suit and has him promise not to get into any fights. Ralph is placed in third grade and Grace in fourth. At recess, Freddie Sprague challenges Ralph to a fight and Ralph refuses. Freddie beats him up and the other children mockingly call him “Molly.” At noon, Freddie forces Ralph to ride Willie Aldivote’s donkey, which bucks him off immediately. When he returns home, Ralph’s mother is distraught at his bruises and ruined suit. She wants to speak to Miss Wheeler, but Ralph’s father convinces her otherwise. She still forces Ralph to wear his suit to school, however, and he continues to be bullied.
Ralph has trouble adjusting at school. Though this is partly the product of being the new kid, Ralph’s mother, committed to raising Ralph like a gentleman, makes Ralph’s acclimatization process more difficult. She not only forces him to wear his Brown Buster suit instead of overalls like the other boys, but she also forbids him from fighting. This combination proves disastrous, as Ralph is unable to defend himself from Fred Sprague’s physical and verbal abuse, quickly losing the respect of the other schoolchildren.
Themes
Ralph describes a trick he learned one day at school. Willie Aldivote makes an “I-betcha” that he can hold his breath the longest, and Ralph turns blue and passes out. Subsequently, Ralph learns that if he returns home blue from the cold, his mother will give him brandy and sugar. Ralph begins turning himself blue intentionally to get the treat, but eventually his father realizes what Ralph is doing. Ralph stops, joking that he has become a teetotaler.
Ralph proves himself to be a clever, if albeit sneaky kid, tricking his mother into giving him brandy. This is an early sign that Ralph, while largely well-behaved, may also have a penchant for mischief.
Themes
To make Ralph feel better about the situation at school, his father takes him on Saturdays to pick up lime and bricks to build a foundation for the house. One evening, Fred Aultland arrives while they are working on the foundation and offers his old bunkhouse in exchange for a ton of coal from Denver. Ralph’s father accepts, and Ralph helps Fred and his father move the bunkhouse. Using a team of horses, they position it next to their existing house.
Ralph’s father, despite his serious disposition, reveals a tender side. Recognizing Ralph’s trouble at school, he invites him to help with work around the house as a distraction. This gesture underscores the positive impact the move to Colorado has had on Ralph’s relationship to his father. In this new setting, Ralph’s father is more clued into Ralph’s daily experience, enabling him to assume a much larger and more involved role in his life.
Themes
Things get worse at school and Ralph cannot take it any longer. He fights back against Freddie Sprague, beating him in a fight in front of the other schoolchildren. Miss Wheeler watches from the schoolhouse but lets the fight finish. She tells Grace to tell their mother that Ralph made his adjustment, but their mother is still upset when she sees Ralph’s bruises. She spanks Ralph, but Ralph thinks it was still worth it. The next day, Saturday, Ralph’s father brings up the fight, asking whether he “lick[ed] the other boy. Ralph says yes, and his father responds “good” and never mentions it again.
Ralph reaches a breaking point and fights back against Freddie Sprague, disobeying his mother. Note that Ralph’s mother is the only one unhappy with Ralph’s choice. This highlights that she hasn’t yet adjusted to the different social conventions in Colorado. Ralph’s father has, which is why he subtly praises his son for fighting and winning. In doing so, Ralph’s father becomes more trustworthy in his son’s eyes, and Ralph feels supported.
Themes
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