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Chapter 9
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Pigman, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Death and Grief
Personal Responsibility
Family
Loneliness
Compassion
Summary
Analysis
Lorraine narrates this chapter. She and John start going over to Mr. Pignati’s house after school for wine and conversation. It’s cold by the time the holiday season approaches, and it’s nice to have somewhere warmer than Masterson’s Tomb to hang out. One night, Lorraine’s mother confronts her about where she’s been. Lorraine lies about going to Latin club. Her mother says she saw a girl who looked just like Lorraine in a car, “necking like a slut.” She doesn’t ever want to catch Lorraine in a car with a boy.
As far as readers know, Lorraine hasn’t had any romantic relationships (not that there’s anything wrong or shameful about romance or “necking”). Even so, Lorraine’s mother projects her biased, over-generalized hatred of men and sexual intimacy onto Lorraine, essentially blaming Lorraine for perceived misdeeds that Lorraine hasn’t even committed. Once more, Lorraine’s mother’s unwarranted criticism of Lorraine shows that she’s too caught up in her own issues to adequately support her daughter.
Themes
Lorraine’s mother is always warning her about boys and their dirty minds. But now, Lorraine can understand why her mother acts this way. It’s not that she hates men—she hates Lorraine’s father. When Lorraine’s mother was pregnant with Lorraine, the doctor called and said that Lorraine’s father had caught a disease, and that’s when Lorraine’s mother found out about Lorraine’s father’s girlfriend. Lorraine’s parents separated, and everyone was shocked, since they’d been childhood sweethearts. It must have been very painful for her mother, Lorraine thinks, to find out about her father’s infidelity. There’s one photo of Lorraine’s parents together when they were young, and they look happy together; this is how Lorraine likes to remember them.
Though Lorraine is only a teenager, she’s far more introspective and observant that her mother. She likely correctly identifies her mother’s hatred of men and sex as her mother’s over-generalized response to Lorraine’s father’s infidelity. Lorraine’s empathy and compassion for someone who repeatedly hurts her is a testament to Lorraine’s introspective nature and maturity, two traits that have defined her character thus far, particularly compared to John (at least the way John was at the beginning of the story).
Themes
Lorraine’s mother notes that she got a run in a pair of her new stockings—a way of indirectly thanking Lorraine for the gift, Lorraine knows. But she also asks Lorraine to remind her where she got the money for them. Lorraine lies that she walked to school instead of taking the bus, and her mother scolds her for not using her money for its intended purpose. Plus, it's not right for a girl to walk the streets alone. Lorraine stays silent and just thinks about how much she’s looking forward to going to Mr. Pignati’s—he’s always asking Lorraine and John what they want, promising to get them anything. Even John has started to buy his own six-packs of beer. Lorraine has been bringing chips and other snacks all along, feeling rude about taking advantage of Mr. Pignati’s kindness.
This passage confirms that Lorraine had her mother in mind when, at the department store in Manhattan, she asked the saleswoman for nylons that were several sizes too big for her. It speaks to Lorraine’s sense of empathy that she thought of her mother rather than herself in that situation, especially given her mother’s unrelenting criticism and cruelty toward her. As with John, Lorraine thinks of the happier, more stable environment of Mr. Pignati’s house to weather the dysfunction she experiences while at home. And as this passage shows, having a reliably stable environment causes the teens to flourish—they become more self-sufficient and generous, bringing food to Mr. Pignati’s house to share and not relying on him to provide it (though of course, John’s habit of underage drinking is still unhealthy, even if he self-funds it).
Themes
Everything is going great until January, when John and Lorraine stop by Mr. Pignati’s one evening and find him looking sad and sick. He tries to smile, but it’s clear he feels down in the dumps. Mr. Pignati explains to the teens that he went to the zoo earlier that day and Bobo wouldn’t eat. Lorraine looks at the snow falling outside and thinks about the old lady in Manhattan saying, “Death is coming.” Lorraine gets up and goes to the kitchen to prepare some food, wanting desperately to cheer everyone up. Some inane TV show is playing in the background, with a starlet singing, “Hurrah for Hollywood,” accompanied by hundreds of chorus boys.
Bobo’s refusal to eat, as Lorraine’s flashback to the old lady in Manhattan suggests, foreshadows ominous events to come. Readers have known since the book’s beginning that Mr. Pignati will eventually die (it was his death that prompted John and Lorraine to write their confession in the first place), so it’s a fair guess that this scene foreshadows his eventual death, too. As well, it seems like a bad sign that Bobo isn’t eating, so it’s possible that he is in poor health, too. Thus far, the book has emphasized the destructive, negative effects of loneliness and the conversely healing power of friendship, so it makes sense that Mr. Pignati’s worry for Bobo, his self-declared “best friend” (and the grief he’d experience if Bobo were to die) could have a devastating effect on Mr. Pignati’s health.
Themes
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Lorraine returns to the living room with a plate and offers John a piece of candy. John is entranced by the starlet on TV, so Lorraine whispers to get his attention—she thinks now is a good time to talk to Mr. Pignati. John looks nervous but takes the lead, explaining to Mr. Pignati that he and Lorraine have something they’d like to say—they have guilty consciences over it, since Mr. Pignati has been so nice to them. First, he admits that he and Lorraine aren’t really charity workers—they’re high school kids. Mr. Pignati looks sad, and John apologizes for lying. John and Lorraine try to explain themselves, but Mr. Pignati just stares at them in silence.
Though John and Lorraine have grown steadily closer to Mr. Pignati, this scene marks a major turning point in their relationship. In coming clean to Mr. Pignati about their real names and their status as high school students, John and Lorraine symbolically show that they’re ready to be more vulnerable and honest around Mr. Pignati and accept him as a friend. Mr. Pignati’s initial silence is somewhat ambiguous—it could be that he’s hurt to learn that the teens have lied to him, or it could also be that their sudden honesty makes him uncomfortable—he could be considering the ways in which he, too, has been dishonest with them, namely by lying about Conchetta being dead.
Themes
When Mr. Pignati finally speaks, he mutters something about Conchetta always keeping the house so clean. John and Lorraine look at each other—it’s the first time Mr. Pignati has mentioned his wife in months. Mr. Pignati continues, explaining that he had the bakery make a special cake for their anniversary. He says he and Conchetta loved each other and didn’t need anyone else. Then he starts to cry. Lorraine and John walk over to comfort him, and then Mr. Pignati admits that Conchetta is dead. In a soft and tender voice, John says, “We’re sorry,” which deeply touches Lorraine.
This is a big moment for Mr. Pignati. To cope with Conchetta’s death, he oscillates between two extremes, both of which deny the reality of her death: intentionally not talking about her and wiping her from his mind, and pretending that she is alive (as he symbolically does when he orders the special anniversary cake from the bakery). Now, he comes clean to John and Lorraine—and to himself—about Conchetta’s death. Though it’s painful for him to do, acknowledging her death and allowing his new friends to comfort him could put him on a path toward working through his grief in a healthy way.
Themes
Not knowing how to fill the silence, Lorraine offers another piece of candy to John, which he accepts. Then she tells him it’s chocolate-covered ants, which sends John sprinting to the kitchen sink to spit it out; Mr. Pignati laughs, and Lorraine is happy to have lightened his mood. John takes a long time to return to the living room. When he does, he flies in on roller skates, which makes Mr. Pignati laugh even harder.
John and Lorraine’s company—and in this passage specifically, their comedic antics—helps Mr. Pignati to cope with his grief over Conchetta in a healthy, productive way, as evidenced by his laughter.
Themes
Mr. Pignati wants to join in on the fun and passes around pencils and paper to play another memory game. He tells them to number from one to five, and how they complete the game will say what kind of person they are. He orders them to listen closely and then tells them a “murder story,” emphasizing certain words in the story. In the story, a WIFE crosses a bridge over the river to see her LOVER while her HUSBAND is out of town. When she tries to go home, an ASSASSIN is waiting for her on the bridge. She tries to cross the river on a boat, but the BOATMAN demands money, which she doesn’t have. She returns to her LOVER to ask him for money, but he says it’s her fault for getting herself in this situation. She tries to cross the bridge again, and the ASSASSIN stabs her in the chest with a knife.
Mr. Pignati’s memory games might be corny and not all that fun for John and Lorraine, but symbolically, the act of playing a game together represents the healing, restorative effects of friendship. Playing the game allows Mr. Pignati to get rid of his loneliness and work through his grief over Conchetta in a healthy, productive way.
Themes
Mr. Pignati finishes the story and then tells the teens to list the characters in the order of most to least guilty. Lorraine lists 1. BOATMAN, 2. HUSBAND, 3. WIFE, 4. LOVER, 5. ASSASSIN. John lists 1. BOATMAN, 2. LOVER, 3. ASSASSIN, 4. WIFE, 5. HUSBAND. Mr. Pignati laughs when he sees their lists. He explains that whichever character is most guilty says something about what’s most important to you in life. Because John and Lorraine both chose the boatman, it means magic is most important to them. The other answers are WIFE = FUN; HUSBAND = LOVE; LOVER = SEX; ASSASSIN = MONEY; BOATMAN = MAGIC. John and Lorraine laugh along with Mr. Pignati, though the game is only kind of fun.
Readers may find the values Mr. Pignati has assigned to the characters rather ethically dubious—that the husband represents “love” insinuates that he paid an assassin to murder his wife out of “love” (or rather, heartbreak over her infidelity), but murder should never be a solution to marital strife or a broken heart. With that being said, readers can interpret John and Lorraine valuing “magic” most of all a number of ways. For one, it could reflect their need to escape reality, namely their unhappy home lives.
Themes
Afterward, John starts roller skating, flying down the hall and around the house while Lorraine and Mr. Pignati watch TV. But eventually, Lorraine puts on her skates and joins John, and then Mr. Pignati follows suit. In all the excitement, Lorraine forgets that Mr. Pignati had already gone to the zoo that day, and shoveled the driveway, and that he’s so old. The three of them play tag, laughing as they chase one another around the house. Finally, John runs up the stairs, and Mr. Pignati bounds up behind him. But then Mr. Pignati suddenly stops. He tries to speak, but only a low moan comes out. He reaches out for Lorraine and then collapses to the floor, clutching his hand to his chest.
Here Lorraine’s many “bad omens” come to fruition: Mr. Pignati has what seems to be a severe heart attack. This passage builds intrigue, leaving readers in the dark about the severity of Mr. Pignati’s heart attack—or even whether he’s survived the heart attack at all. It also demonstrates John and Lorraine’s lingering immaturity and self-absorption—though they’re far more considerate of others than they were at the start of the story, they still totally disregarded Mr. Pignati’s age and health and the possibility that he could overextend himself by roller skating.
Themes
