Week 2: Reader Response Theory

"Pink shook his head at me. “That is a good man in the making, one who ain’t gonna be led by nobody. Ain’t that right, Sonny?”" (67).
       Sonny goes out for a ride with Pinkston, one of the tenants at Las Flores, who happens to be an albino. Pinkston is sort of an interesting character. Sonny knows that the business and people Pinkston hangs around can mean trouble but because Cloyd doesn’t like him, Sonny doesn’t mind talking to him. Maybe more to get on the nerves of Cloyd. Cloyd has sent Sonny to do a tedious amount of weeding and Sonny just doesn’t seem to care to finish it or get it done at all. Sonny has given up on trying to make Cloyd happy for his mother’s sake. He now does his own thing more then ever, including hanging out with Pinkston.  Pink and Sonny go to an auto parts store and meet with a friend of Pink, Sonny and Pink had been drinking and the man at the auto parts store hands Pink a coke instead of a beer, because he doesn’t want to let Pink become a bad influence on Sonny. Pink makes the statement that Sonny is going to be a good man and not be led by no one but himself.
    I feel this part of the book foreshadows what is to become of Sonny. Though through out the beginning of the novel Sonny hasn’t done much of anything, things will begin to change. Sonny holds a lot of anger and resentment for his mother. Sonny acts as though nothing bothers him, and he doesn’t show his emotions to anyone; but deep down inside he has a lot of emotions. I can relate to Sonny because sometimes I keep my emotions to myself. I must admit its not always the best thing, but I believe there is a time and place for everything. I feel Sonny feels the same way, even though he doesn’t know what he want’s to do with his life, he knows who he doesn’t want to be like in his life. So though he keeps things to himself, he knows that one day he is going to do something to change all the problems in his life, he just doesn’t know what quite yet. I think Pink foreshadows that we need not to worry about Sonny, and also gives Sonny something to see in himself that he may not be able to see.