Summer of the Seventeenth Doll: Act 2, Scene 2 Summary & Analysis

A few days later, Roo, still dressed from work, is asleep on the couch as the sound of a drunk argument comes from outside. Olive enters the house, yelling at whoever's outside to pay the taxi driver, and Emma hisses at her to be quiet to let Roo sleep. Olive is surprised that Roo's asleep, and upset with Emma for letting him sleep. She goes to wake him up as Barney calls for Emma to come settle things with the taxi driver.

When Olive shakes Roo, it takes him a minute to fully wake up. Olive tells Roo that Barney is very drunk and is here with a friend. She describes the friend as Roo becomes alert. He gets up to look out the window and returns to Olive angry: the "friend" is Johnnie Dowd. They hear laughter from outside and Olive quickly comes up with a plan to allow Roo to escape seeing Johnnie, but Roo refuses because he doesn't want Johnnie to think he's scared. Olive makes Roo promise to not start anything.

An extremely drunk Barney appears on the verandah. He has ahold of Emma's apron and asks her loudly for a kiss while Pearl and Johnnie try to control him. When Barney lunges at Emma, she breaks free and runs into the house. Johnnie laughs and warns Barney that he'll be in trouble for "carnival knowledge." Emma sharply reprimands him and runs upstairs. Olive snaps at Barney to stop, and Pearl seems relieved to have help. As Barney tries to break free, he and Johnnie swing into the room. In silence, Roo stares at Johnnie and Barney.

Johnnie congenially greets Roo and they exchange awkward pleasantries. Barney steps forward and begins to try to talk to Roo, but Johnnie pushes Barney back and steps towards Roo himself. He holds out his hand and tells Roo he'd like to shake hands. Roo grudgingly accepts, which excites Barney. In his excitement Barney turns to kiss Pearl and Pearl, disgusted, runs upstairs. When Barney starts talking again, Johnnie roughly tells him to stop before turning back to Roo and apologizing for laughing at him. Roo tries to deflect the apology, but Johnnie persists.

After an awkward pause, Johnnie says that the boys want to see Roo, and they were wondering if they could all go to the stadium tonight. Roo uneasily tries to escape the invitation and Olive tells the men that Roo has other plans for the night. Unperturbed, Johnnie suggests they all go to the races the next day. When Olive again tries to say that Roo has other plans, Roo cuts her off and agrees to go. Johnnie enthusiastically starts to make plans, but Roo tells Johnnie to plan with Barney and let him know. He motions to his dirty clothes and says he needs to shower. Johnnie comments that they caught him just home from work. As he leaves the room, Roo agrees, and seems pained.

Olive coldly asks Johnnie if he'll stay for dinner, but Johnnie declines the invitation. She follows Roo upstairs. Barney, elated, tells Johnnie that getting Roo to shake was easy. Johnnie is less thrilled—he says that Roo treated him like he was a prickly cactus. Johnnie darkly says that Roo had better start acting right, because he's not going to apologize and grovel. He suggests that he needs to have a drink with Roo, and says he'd like to have a good relationship with him. Barney insists that Johnnie and Roo actually have a lot in common.

Suddenly, Barney lights up with an idea. He suggests that just the three of them—he, Roo, and Johnnie—go to the races tomorrow instead of going out in a big group. When Johnnie says that Roo won't talk in that situation, Barney suggests they take Pearl and Olive. When Johnnie notes the women's age, Barney assures him that they'll find someone younger to go with him. He hollers up the stairs for Pearl to come down and asks Johnnie if he'd be interested in going out with an eighteen-year-old girl. Johnnie is skeptical and asks if a southern girl will be silly.

When Pearl enters the living room, Barney reintroduces her to Johnnie. She steps past them to sit on the sofa and tells Barney that Olive has been telling her all about Johnnie. Barney asks if Olive mentioned that they were going to the races and tells her that the plan has changed, and they'd like to take her and Olive with them. Pearl is surprised, as she and Olive work on Saturday afternoons, and Barney nonchalantly tells her to take the day off. Pearl hesitantly agrees and says she used to like the races. Barney insists that it's settled and turns to Johnnie.

Pearl asks if Johnnie will be going without a date. Barney begins to say that Johnnie is shy and particular with women. Johnnie tries to stop Barney, but Barney presses on and asks if Pearl's daughter would like to go with him. Barney cannot remember Vera's name, and Pearl is alarmed. She gets up and says that she couldn't allow Vera to go: she's only eighteen, and she wants Vera to be raised better. When Barney persists, Pearl stiffly says she doesn't want Vera getting into bad company.

Amazed, Barney reminds Pearl that she'd be there to supervise Vera. Johnnie tries to diffuse the situation, as Barney accuses Pearl of messing everything up. Pearl nearly cries, and Barney gets another idea for who to bring for Johnnie instead of Vera. He runs out onto the back verandah. Johnnie kindly tells Pearl that he won't insist on Vera coming. Pearl loses her composure completely and says that all cane cutters are "tarred with the same brush" as she runs upstairs.

Johnnie impatiently calls for Barney, who comes back into the living room dragging a surprised Bubba with him. Johnnie tries to tell Barney that Pearl is upset, but Barney tells him to forget about Pearl. He introduces Johnnie and Bubba, though Barney doesn't let Bubba talk. Bubba and Johnnie shake hands as Barney invites Bubba to the races with Johnnie tomorrow. Bubba is uncertain, but Barney insists she has nowhere else to go and Bubba finally agrees. Barney is thrilled at his planning victory, but Johnnie sourly says that not everything is settled. He firmly asks Barney to wait outside, and Barney reluctantly leaves the room.

Johnnie turns to Bubba and awkwardly tells her that if she doesn't want to go to the races, she doesn't have to go. Bubba insists she'd like to go and she only seemed hesitant because she was surprised. She continues that Barney and Roo have never brought someone from up north to this house. Johnnie looks around and asks Bubba if she lives here. When she explains that she lives next door, Johnnie suggests that Barney asking her to the races is less proper, but Bubba assures him that she spends a lot of time with Roo and Barney.

Johnnie begins to walk through the room and says he's spent a lot of time imagining this place, and it's developed a reputation among the boys up north with what Roo and Barney say about it. As Johnnie looks around, he says it looks like their tales were mostly lies. Bubba nervously says the house isn't big, but Johnnie insists that this place just doesn't look fun at all. When Bubba insists that Johnnie just doesn't understand, he asks her to tell him. She shakily says that it's the events that create the feeling here and it's not something she can just tell him about.

Johnnie motions to the kewpie dolls and asks what they're for. Bubba explains that Roo gives one to Olive every year, and Johnnie snorts and makes disparaging remarks about the dolls. Seeing Bubba's face, he asks if she's a relative, and then asks how he's hurt her feelings. She tells him that the dolls are meaningful to Olive and Roo, and says again that he wouldn't understand.

Johnnie sits and asks why everyone treats anything connected to Roo as though Johnnie won't understand it, or can't live up to the standard. Bubba sits and wonders if it's like the walking sticks. When Johnnie looks confused, she begins to explain that it's a running joke. He turns the conversation back to the races and asks Bubba if she'd truly like to go with him. When Bubba says she'd like to, he asks her to remind him of her name. Johnnie says that Roo and Barney are trying to keep Bubba "in the cradle" by calling her a nickname, and asks for her real name. Bubba smiles at him and says her name is Kathie. They smile warmly at each other, and then Johnnie yells for Barney so he can say goodbye.

Barney comes in from the verandah and calls for Roo. Johnnie asks Barney to tell Kathie the plan for tomorrow. Barney is confused for a moment until he follows Johnnie's gaze to Bubba. Roo appears, half shaved, and cursorily says goodbye to Johnnie. At Johnnie's prodding, Roo asks him to tell the boys to stay out of trouble. Everyone laughs and then Barney walks Johnnie out to the road.

Roo asks Bubba why she's here, and she explains that she met Johnnie. Olive enters, asks if Johnnie's gone, and greets Bubba. Roo seems angry and when Olive tries to say that meeting Johnnie wasn't so bad, Roo coldly says that Barney forced him to give in to Johnnie. Olive moves away from him and tells him to not make things worse, since Emma is upset and Pearl is crying.

Roo asks why Pearl is crying, and Olive says she's not sure, but it's something about Barney asking her to allow Vera to go to the races. Bubba cuts in and says that Johnnie asked her to go, not Vera. Olive sighs and insists that Barney wouldn't try to take such a young girl to the races with only men. Bubba explains that it's not all men going tomorrow; it's her, Roo, Barney, Olive, Pearl, and Johnnie. Roo is incensed that Barney and Johnnie apparently worked out the plan before they even arrived to try to get him in the same room with Johnnie. He wipes his face, throws his towel at Olive, and yells out the door for Barney. Olive and Bubba try to call Roo back, but Roo tells them to go away as Barney drunkenly wanders back towards the door.

Olive warns Roo that he can argue, but not fight. Roo yells at her to get out, and Olive pulls Bubba away with her. Roo grabs Barney's collar and hauls him inside. Barney asks Roo to be gentle since he's drunk, but Roo furiously shoves Barney into the room. Barney admits he brought Johnnie for Roo's own good, but Roo won't let him speak more. He insists that Barney is trying to bring him down by letting Johnnie see him covered in paint. Barney insists that they've all been nearly naked together out in the cane fields, but Roo says that the cane fields aren't the same as a paint factory. Barney tries to turn away, but Roo insists they stay and talk.

Barney turns back to Roo and accuses him of being jealous of Johnnie, and he says that the boys feel the same way. He says that Johnnie is going to be ganger next season, and Roo asks if Barney brought Johnnie here so that they could make up and Roo could resume his role as ganger. Roo begins lobbing accusations at Barney: of scheming and using Bubba as bait, of chasing after Johnnie, and of trying to get Johnnie to join them here for the layoff. He calls Barney a leech. Barney rushes Roo and they fight. Olive and Emma run in and try to separate the men as Bubba and Pearl look on. Olive finally screams and the men break apart. She helps Roo to a chair and threatens to make them sleep outside. Roo tells Olive that this is none of her business.

Olive angrily asks if she's supposed to just sit and watch men their age fight over one bad season. When Roo insists it's not about the bad season, Barney tells Roo to "be a man" and admit the truth. He goads Roo, taunting him by saying he's not willing to admit the truth. Olive asks if Barney wants Roo to admit that Johnnie Dowd was the better man, and reminds Barney that Roo had a bad back. Barney laughs. Olive asks what's funny, and when Barney asks Roo to tell her, Roo rushes Barney, pulls his hands behind his back, and forces him to his knees. Gasping, Barney says that Roo never had a bad back. Roo says that Johnnie did a better job because he's a better man, and then Roo throws Barney to the floor.

Barney asks Roo if he really thought he would've told the women his secret, and Roo insists it's time the women knew they were dealing with losers. Roo continues and tells Barney to share how disappointing of a lover he's been recently. Roo mentions several women who have been seen laughing after a night with Barney, as Barney pleads with Roo to stop and says the women were lying. Finally, Roo says that Barney couldn't even hold Nancy. Barney curses at Roo. He grabs the nearest vase, which holds the seventeenth kewpie doll, and tries to throw it at Roo's head. Roo catches it and throws it to the floor, where it shatters. Olive sinks to the floor and grabs the doll, while Bubba runs out the back door.