Red Fern Grows Theme

Love. Loyalty. Friendship. Are these words what every boy feels towards his pets? They certainly are when it comes to Billy and his dogs. As Oprah Winfrey once said, “Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.” What she means by this is, everyone will praise someone for all of the amazing things they have done, but when that person fails, only true friends will be there to take the troubled way out. This beautiful relationship can be seen in Wilson Rawls’ realistic fiction, Where the Red Fern Grows. In this story, the theme of friends, love, trust, and loyalty are present in the bond between Billy and his dogs, Old Dan and Little Ann. This relationship is represented by everything each of the three characters go through for each other.

For instance, when Papa tells Billy to give up on the coon that his dogs treed and find another raccoon, Billy says, “‘Now it’s up to me to do my part, and I’m going to, Papa… I don’t care if it takes me a whole year’” (Rawls 80). This shows that Billy remains loyal to his dogs because although he is faced with the greatest challenge, he perseveres and does not lose hope. When Billy says “I don’t care”, the tone that is presented reveals that he is passionate about keeping a promise to his dogs, and will not let them down at any cost. Billy knows that if he doesn’t overcome this barrier, his dogs will never trust him again. After all of the hard work, love and passion it took to get his dogs, he doesn’t want to lose them. This piece of evidence also illustrates that Billy will not let anything come in between him and his dogs even if it is the biggest, mightiest tree the entire river bottoms. The determination demonstrated by Billy during this event keys into the trust that Old Dan and Little Ann have in Billy while contributing to other emotions the three of them