Teresa Character Analysis in On the Road

A Mexican woman with a small child who has fled her abusive husband. Sal meets Teresa on a bus to Los Angeles and the two forge a connection immediately. They sleep together in L.A., and plan to hitchhike to New York together, but then decide to work in rural California to save money for a bus to New York. Sal lives with Teresa for a while and the two seem to care about each other a great deal, but Sal eventually gets restless and leaves her behind in order to head to New York by himself.

Teresa Character Timeline in On the Road

The timeline below shows where the character Teresa appears in On the Road. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

When the bus arrived in L.A., Sal started to worry that Teresa (the Mexican girl, whose name he now happens to mention) was a hustler who took... (full context)

Sal mentioned a friend of his in New York, a six-foot redhead named Dorie, and Teresa thought that this was a Madame and Sal was a pimp. The two argued and... (full context)

Sal stayed at the hotel with Teresa for the next fifteen days. They planned to hitchhike to New York together. One night,... (full context)

Society, Norms, and Counterculture Theme Icon

...marijuana, jazz, and “long-haired brokendown hipsters.” Sal “wanted to meet them all,” but he and Teresa were busy looking for work, so they could save money to go to New York.... (full context)

Sal went with Teresa as she got her things from her sister and a friend who lived on “the... (full context)

As Sal and Teresa walked along the road, cars full of high-school kids sped by, the kids jeering at... (full context)

The next morning, Sal and Teresa decided to go to Bakersfield and work picking grapes until they had enough money to... (full context)

Sal and Teresa bought a bottle of wine that night and after drinking they decided to hitchhike to... (full context)

Teresa’s brother, Rickey, sold manure to farmers. He drove Sal and Teresa to “see some farmers... (full context)

...drunk with Rickey and Ponzo, and then they ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant with Teresa. Teresa and Sal didn’t have a plan for where they would sleep, so they ended... (full context)

...found a tent in the “cotton fields and grape vineyards,” where he could stay with Teresa and her kid. Rickey and Ponzo arrived with beer and started drinking. Rickey assured Sal... (full context)

When winter came around, Teresa and Sal decided they had to leave their tent. Teresa and Sal went back with... (full context)

Sal went with Teresa back to her family, but he waited a quarter-mile away, so her parents wouldn’t see... (full context)

Not wanting Sal to leave, Teresa told him that he could stay in a nearby farmer’s barn, and she would pick... (full context)

Teresa didn’t want Sal to leave, but he told her that he had to. He had... (full context)