42 pages • 1 hour read
Gary D. SchmidtOrbiting Jupiter
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2015A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapter 6
Chapter 6 Summary
On New Year’s Day, Joseph and Jack start to play as they shovel snow, and for the first time, Jack sees Joseph act playfully. At dinner that night, the phone rings. Mr. Brook is calling to tell the Hurds that he has won visitation rights to see Joseph at the Hurd farm. Joseph becomes quiet and visits Rosie in the barn.
After the first day of the new semester, Joseph and Jack walk home. When they arrive, Mr. Brook and Mrs. Stroud are waiting for them. Mr. Brook asks to take Joseph for a ride, but Mrs. Stroud won’t give permission; they talk in the living room instead. Mrs. Stroud tells the Hurds that Joseph’s father wants money from Maddie’s parents before he will allow Jupiter’s adoption to proceed.
Jack goes about his chores, but the sound of yelling from the house draws his attention. He walks in to find his father and Mr. Brook standing face-to-face, and both men are angry. Mr. Brook accuses Mr. Hurd of keeping Joseph only for the money. Mr. and Mrs. Hurd tell Joseph that all the checks have gone into a college fund for him, but Mr. Brook states that he does not believe Joseph can make it into a college. As Mr. Brook leaves the house, he puts a hand on Jack’s shoulder. Mr. Hurd walks toward Mr. Brook, but Mr. Brook leaves without a fight.
Jack and Joseph go back to their chores. Joseph doesn’t talk again until dinner, when he asks Mrs. Hurd about college. She assures him that he will be able to go. The weather changes the next day; Joseph and Jack walk the Hurds’ horse, Quintus Sertorius, around his paddock. Joseph rides the horse, which he has never done before.
The Hurds help Joseph find a way to see Jupiter. They ask his schoolteachers to write letters on his behalf, and they speak to his counselor. They learn that Jupiter is in a town called Brunswick. Joseph stops talking, and the next day after school, Jack waits to walk home with Joseph; Joseph never shows up nor does he return home. Jack’s parents learn that some of Joseph’s clothes and books are missing. As they set out to find Joseph, Jack tells Mr. Hurd that he believes Joseph has gone to find Jupiter.
Chapter 6 Analysis
Chapter 6 begins on a hopeful note, but the tone changes with the arrival of Mr. Brook. In classic plot structure, the story’s antagonist undermines moments of peak happiness or achievement before the climax. Mr. Brook’s re-entry into the story fits this trope; news of his impending arrival strips Joseph of his newfound hope.
The fact that Mrs. Stroud accompanies Mr. Brook provides the reader with more exposition. She reveals his financial motives behind the visit, which contrasts with the behavior of Mr. and Mrs. Hurd, who announce that they are saving their foster payments for Joseph’s college fund, making it clear that Mr. Brook has fewer moral scruples than Mr. and Mrs. Hurd.
The changing weather continues to symbolize the path of Jack and Joseph’s friendship. A surprisingly warm day gives the boys a reprieve from the stress of Joseph’s father’s appearance. Joseph rides a horse for the first time in his life, another sign that he is progressing into a new life. The spring-like weather, however, “wouldn’t last long, my father predicted, maybe a few days” (132). A similar air of uncertainty hangs over Jack and Joseph, and the inevitable turn of the weather detracts from his hope: “The days dragged on, and they grew heavy with snow […] and they grew heavy with cold again […] and they grew heavy with waiting” (134). Like the winter world outside, Joseph and the Hurds are frozen in place. Outside forces stall their actions, and Joseph again distances himself from Jack.
When Joseph decides to act on his own, he relegates Jack back to his position as the passive protagonist. By running away to find Jupiter alone, Joseph rejects his new normal and turns away from the rituals that have changed him. Just as he repeatedly tried to flee the juvenile detention centers, Joseph turns away from his surrogate family. Before he can allow the Hurd family to accept him, he departs, a behavior that is typical of crisis moments. Joseph’s exist presents another opportunity for Jack to become a more active protagonist. Jack holds vital information that points his family toward Joseph, proving that their deepening friendship again provides a gateway for Jack to exert independence.
Related Titles
By Gary D. Schmidt
