Symbolism In Greasy Lake

What defines a bad individual? In T. C. Boyle’s story “Greasy Lake” is a story of three boys’ unforgettable night unfolds. The narrator does his best at first to describe the three boys as “dangerous characters” (56). However, the narrator shows that he and his friends are nothing more than kids testing the limits, and not actually “bad”. Despite what the narrator says compared to the “bad greasy character” (58), the narrator’s self-proclaimed “bad”-ness is undermined. The true “bad” character in “Greasy Lake” is the “character in greasy jeans and engineer boots” (58). The greasy man quickly showed his “bad”-ness with a “Rockette kick of his steel-toed boot” (58). Likewise, the greasy man was fighting three guys at the same time. …show more content…
At the very beginning, the narrator tries to show his “bad”-ness by saying they: “sniffed glue and ether and what somebody claimed was cocaine.” (56) Certainly, a “bad” character would be able to distinguish cocaine from a general white powder when presented, rather than playing the faith in a “somebody.” The narrator continues describing Digby who “allowed his father to pay his tuition at Cornell” (57), and “Jeff was thinking of quitting school to become a painter/musician/head-shop proprietor.” (57) These were the actions of kids, adolescent teens at best, but certainly not “bad” characters. Again, the narrator describes the boys’ youthfulness by saying “we’d cruise the strip sixty-seven times.” (57) Also, to cruising the strip, the boys committed basic juvenile pranks by chucking “two dozen raw eggs at mailboxes and hitchhikers.” (57) Another example of the narrator showing his lack of “bad”-ness was after he received the greasy man’s steel-toe boot on the chin he says, “chipped my favorite tooth” (58). This concern shows the narrator is very interested in appearance and makes the reader wonder “Who has a favorite tooth?” Certainly, not a bad and dangerous character. The narrator continues to show his naïve-ness when he goes and retrieves the tire iron kept under his seat. He admits “that I hadn’t been involved in a fight …show more content…
Even though the narrator tries at the beginning of the story to underline he and his friend’s “bad”-ness, he only undermines himself. The actions the boys take can be summed up as teenage kids testing the limits, not being “bad” dangerous

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