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Chapter 8
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Body, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Loss of Innocence
Fate, Luck, and Chance
Confronting Mortality
The Power and Limitation of Friendship
Making Meaning through Stories
Summary
Analysis
Back in 1960, Gordie gathers blankets and money from his bedroom, then heads to the treehouse. On the way, Chris pulls him into an alley to show him a giant pistol—which he stole from his dad’s dresser. Luckily, Chris’s dad and his drinking buddies have left town for the weekend, if not longer. Chris is the only boy Gordie knows who won’t ever touch alcohol; given his father’s and brothers’ behavior, he’s terrified of becoming an alcoholic.
Chris’s choice to bring a gun on the trip suggests that he perceives more potential danger in the world than his friends. It’s possible that his excessive caution—like his fear of becoming an alcoholic—is an overreaction based on his own unique circumstances. But readers should pay attention to things that Chris says and does, since Gordie respects him and his insight so deeply.
Themes
Chris hands the gun to Gordie. Gordie hefts it, feeling like a tough guy in a movie, takes aim at a trashcan, and pulls the trigger. It’s loaded, and a bullet tears through the trashcan. The boys run. Gordie is furious, but Chris swears he thought the gun was unloaded. Teddy and Vern laugh when they hear the story. They ask why Chris brought the gun, and he says it seemed like a good idea in case they encounter a bear. Teddy makes sure that Vern set up a tent in his field as a decoy, and Vern says he did—and put in two turned-on flashlights in case his parents looked out the window that night. And so, with Chris leading the way, they set out on their adventure.
Chris and Gordie goof around with the gun—an instrument of death—like it’s no big deal, betraying their still childlike innocence. Death is still a distant concept to them, despite Dennis’s recent funeral. The fact that Teddy and Vern (the least smart of the four) accept Chris’s explanation so easily warns readers that they shouldn’t do the same. Chris sees a danger that the others don’t yet. Finally, readers should note that Chris leads the way, as he does throughout most of the book. Although Gordie tells the story, he presents Chris, his best friend, as a true hero.
Themes
