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Chapter 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in That Was Then, This Is Now, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Humility, Responsibility, and Coming of Age
Brotherhood, Loyalty, and Betrayal
Rules and Consequences
Violence and Revenge
Love and Selflessness
Summary
Analysis
Bryon looks all over town for a job but has no luck. He even asks Charlie if he can work at the bar, but Charlie says that he can’t give Bryon a job because he’s a minor. Even if Bryon was of age, Charlie says, he wouldn’t hire Bryon because he lies constantly. Charlie tells Bryon that he’s more inclined to trust Bryon’s actions than his words, and he says that Bryon should try to figure out why he might not be able to get a job. Bryon then asks if he can borrow Charlie’s car on Saturday night, given Charlie’s statement that he trusts Bryon’s actions. Charlie thinks about it and says yes, as long as he returns it with the same amount of gas. Bryon is shocked that Charlie has agreed. He’s is unable to say thank you, explaining that he’s always had a hard time being sincere.
Bryon starts to take on more responsibility in his relationship with his mother, looking for a job in earnest in order to contribute to their household. This marks a growing selflessness in Bryon as he tries to support his mother and prioritize her over himself. Charlie’s comments also reinforce the fact that Bryon often disregards the rules as much as Mark does, via his constant lying. But here, the symbol of cars begins to change for Bryon—Charlie’s car in particular symbolizes Bryon’s increasing responsibility and maturity, as he has to make sure that he returns the car to Charlie in good condition.
Themes
Bryon then leaves the bar and calls Cathy, asking her out to a dance that Saturday at the school gym. Cathy agrees. Later, Bryon asks if Mark wants to double date. Mark is surprised that Bryon is going out, remarking that Bryon hasn’t gone out with a girl since Angela Shepard—whom Bryon can’t stand now. Mark says he promised he’d go solo with Terry Jones, Williamson, and Ponyboy Curtis because he thought Bryon would go solo too. Bryon says he doesn’t like Curtis, and Mark knows it’s because Angela dumped Bryon to try and date Curtis—although Curtis ignored her.
Bryon’s and Mark’s differing plans for the dance foreshadow how their relationship will change as a result of Bryon dating Cathy. Mark believes that he and Bryon are inseparable, illustrated by his assumption that they will go to the dance solo with a group of guys, as they usually do. Hinton suggests that Bryon, on the other hand, is starting to move away from Mark and their usual dynamic by taking Cathy to the dance and leaving Mark to his own devices.
Themes
Saturday arrives. Bryon is excited for the dance, but he doesn’t know what to wear. As Bryon shaves in the bathroom, Mark says that he found a shirt for Bryon to wear. Bryon goes into their shared bedroom and sees the shirt, which happens to be Bryon’s size and a good color for him. Bryon wonders if Mark stole the shirt, but he pushes that thought aside and thinks how lucky he is to have a friend like Mark.
Again, Hinton indicates that Bryon is questioning some of the crimes that Mark is committing. At this point, however, the bonds of their loyalty continue to outweigh Bryon’s concerns about the rules and any potential consequences that Mark’s thefts have for other people.
Themes
Bryon drives to pick up Cathy. While he waits for her to get ready, Mr. and Mrs. Carlson chat with him as M&M reads nearby. Mr. Carlson makes fun of M&M’s long hair and the fact that M&M flunked out of math and gym. Cathy then emerges, and she and Bryon leave. In the car, Cathy wishes that Mr. Carlson wouldn’t pick on M&M. She says that despite M&M’s flaws, he’s caring and doesn’t get into trouble. Cathy explains that she’s really close with M&M and figures that Bryon must know about being close with a sibling because of Mark. Bryon agrees.
While her father makes fun of M&M, Cathy chooses to focus on the best parts of M&M in order to support him. This is similar to how Bryon chooses to view Mark, and Cathy explicitly connects her loyalty and protective bond with M&M to the bond that Bryon and Mark share. In making a direct comparison, she reinforces the fact that Mark and Bryon have a dynamic similar to that of biological siblings.
Themes
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Bryon and Cathy arrive at the dance, which is in full swing by the time they get there. Most people don’t recognize Cathy because she’s been away, and everyone stares at the two of them. Bryon likes being the center of attention, and he can tell that Cathy is enjoying the attention as well. He thinks that he really likes Cathy.
Bryon’s deepening affection for Cathy is spurring a change in his personality. Whereas before he enjoyed being part of a gang of brothers, now he is starting to enjoy having his own identity away from the others.
Themes
Bryon and Cathy meet up with Mark and Curtis, and Bryon is worried that Cathy might want to ditch him for Curtis just like Angela did. As they talk, however, he is relieved that Cathy doesn’t seem interested in Curtis. Mark and Curtis then go over to a group of girls, and Cathy comments that she forgot how attractive Mark is. Bryon has a flash of jealousy and anger. He explains that the worst feeling in the world is “to hate the person you love best.”
Bryon’s flash of jealousy constitutes the first genuine conflict between Mark and Bryon—though Mark is completely ignorant of the incident. Bryon’s intense “hatred” of the person he “loves best”—even if it is fleeting—suggests that he feels deeply betrayed by Mark in this moment. Even though Cathy is the one who made the comment, Bryon can’t stand the idea that Mark might end up with a girl he likes, because it would betray the bonds of loyalty that they share.
Themes
Just then, Angela Shepard approaches Bryon and Cathy. She’s as beautiful as ever, with long curly black hair, but Bryon wonders at why he ever liked her. Just to rub it in, Bryon asks if she is at the dance with Curtis (knowing full well that Curtis ignored her advances). Angela calls him a few ugly names and walks away. When Bryon explains that he used to go out with Angela, Cathy is relatively indifferent to her, and Bryon realizes that Cathy is very sensible and mature. He also recognizes that she isn’t really interested in Mark—she just likes him because he’s Bryon’s brother and best friend.
Bryon’s progression from dating Angela to dating Cathy parallels his maturation. Angela is characterized with the same kind of smart mouth that Bryon and Mark have, whereas Cathy is much more levelheaded. This mirrors Bryon’s own move away from his know-it-all attitude and toward a more mature sensibility. Bryon even observes this change in himself: he recognizes how his feelings for Angela have shifted from affection to disdain, illustrating how he is starting outgrow his old mindsets.
Themes
Bryon and Cathy dance together through the night. Later in the evening, they hear a scream in the parking lot. Curtis finds Bryon and shouts that Mark has been hurt, and Bryon shoves his way to the parking lot. Mark is lying on the ground, unconscious, with blood running down the side of his face from a bad gash. Bryon is really worried; Curtis tells him that a cop called an ambulance. Bryon then looks around and sees that a cop has the kid who attacked Mark in handcuffs.
This incident illustrates why the loyalty that comes with brotherhood is particularly important for boys like Mark and Bryon, because living in a violent community means that they have to have each other’s back during fights. That Bryon was absent during this incident, therefore, suggests that he is growing apart from Mark as he grows closer to Cathy.
Themes
Bryon looks at the kid who attacked Mark and says that he is going to kill him for what he did. Curtis tells Bryon that he and Mark were sitting on the car, and the kid just showed up and started taking a swing at Curtis. They started to fight, and the kid picked up a beer bottle. Mark stepped between them to calm the kid down, and the kid hit Mark over the head with the bottle. Bryon then sees the kid talking to Angela and realizes that she asked the kid to fight with Curtis because Curtis ignored her. Bryon realizes that the person he really wants to get even with is Angela.
Here, Hinton underscores how violence perpetuates violence especially when it is used as a tool for revenge. Angela wanted to get revenge on Curtis for turning down her advances. And because the kid’s attack resulted in Mark getting hurt as well, this spurs Bryon and Mark’s desire to get revenge on Angela. Thus, revenge becomes a violent cycle that only spurs more violence.
Themes
Soon after, the ambulance arrives, and Bryon rides with Mark to the hospital. Bryon almost starts to cry with worry. Mark asks Bryon to stay with him in the hospital, and Bryon promises that he will. At the hospital, a doctor puts 10 stitches in Mark’s head. When they discharge Mark, Bryon worries about how they’ll get home. Just then, however, Cathy and Curtis arrive at the hospital in Charlie’s car—Curtis had hot-wired it. Bryon starts to admire Curtis, realizing that he had no fault in what happened between Bryon and Angela.
Bryon’s loyalty and love for Mark is clear here. Not only does he protect Mark physically, but he also supports him emotionally in whatever way he can. Despite Bryon’s tough reputation, he almost cries with worry over Mark, emphasizing how important Mark is to him. That Mark explicitly asks Bryon to stay with him also illustrates how valuable Bryon’s support is to him.
Themes
Bryon drives Curtis home and then drops Cathy off at her house. He apologizes to Cathy for how things turned out, but she assures him that she had a good time. Bryon wants to kiss her, but he decides to play it safe and refrain from doing so, in case she doesn’t want to. He tells her that he will call her.
The fact that Bryon doesn’t kiss Cathy shows that he is starting to become more selfless and think about Cathy’s perspective. Rather than prioritizing his own desires, he instead thinks about what she might want and chooses to do he thinks would make her most comfortable.
Themes
When Bryon and Mark arrive home, Bryon helps Mark into bed. Mark tells Bryon that he was really scared when he got hit—he thought he was going to die. He explains that when Bryon arrived, however, he calmed down. He says that he feels as though Bryon is really his brother. Bryon knows that Mark has never had a real family—even before Mark’s parents died, Mark knew that his dad wasn’t his real father and that he was illegitimate. Bryon says that he thinks of Mark as his brother too, and when he looks at Mark, he sees that Mark is smiling.
This exchange drives home the magnitude of Bryon and Mark’s loyalty and brotherhood. They both protect each other physically, and they feel emotionally supported knowing that they have each other’s backs and think of each other as brothers. This is particularly important for Mark because he never had a true family, and so having a brother makes Mark feel like he has the same physical protection that a biological family might provide.
Themes
