Essay on The Red Pony by Adora

The Red Pony by John Steinbeck is a story about growing up and learning lessons. Jody, the protagonist, is a ten-year old boy growing up in the Salinas Valley, with an infinite number of chores to do. Obscure in school and sternly treated at home, Jody is delighted and proud when his stony father gives him a red pony named Gabilan. However, Gabilan later passes away.

One of the major reasons Jody cares for the pony is because of pride. While he does appear to make many sacrifices for the pony's welfare, he boasts about the pony to earn himself prestige; he worries that, upon riding the pony, he'll injure himself, not worrying about Gabilan's safety. Jody forgets about the pony after its death, upon learning he'll have the chance to get a new horse.

Jody makes plans to show Gabilan off immediately after receiving the pony. Jody brings six boys from his school to see the pony without considering Gabilan might be nervous or inclined towards an unsociable disposition. Jody brags about Gabilan to the other boys, and proudly displays the beloved saddle of red Moroccan leather, liking the saddle because of its beauty, which boosts his pride, in direct disregard towards Billy Budd's criticisms of its showiness.

Jody is more worried about himself than the pony. When learning he'll have the chance to ride Gabilan, he becomes afraid "that in the flurry of bucking Gabilan might slip and fall on him and break his [Jody's] leg or his hip. He had seen that happen to men before, how they writhed on the ground like squashed bugs." Jody is also worried about shaming himself while riding Gabilan--"He didn't like to think what would happen if he grabbed the horn. Maybe his father and Billy Buck would never speak to him again, they would be so ashamed. The news would get about and his mother would be ashamed too. And the schoolyard--it was awful to contemplate."

After a spell of sadness after Gabilan's death, Jody appears to forget completely about the red pony and focus his attention on caring for Nellie, his father's horse, as part of a bargain with his father to earn a new horse. Jody is proud just thinking about this achievement--"his shoulders swayed a little with maturity and pride."

I conclude to say that Jody merely enjoys Gabilan's company because it gives him stature in a world built upon pride; his boasts about Gabilan display his want for attention and how he considers the pony the perfect tool to execute his plans for prestige. Jody remains, in my opinion, a pride-motivated protagonist and a key figure in one of the most acclaimed works of 20th Century literature.