62 pages • 2 hours read
John Reynolds GardinerStone Fox
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1980A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
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Sacrifice as Declarations of Devotion
These chapters surround the central theme of sacrifice and the family, which displays the range of different attitudes and approaches to devotion and care. Some characters are all willing to do everything in their power to protect the rest. This theme is most clear through Searchlight and Little Willy’s devotion to each other and the farm. Though Searchlight is not a dog, and Little Willy is certainly not a farmer, they inhabit roles that have left vacant by either an absent parental figure or by a financial lack. Gardiner writes of Searchlight, “She walked over and stood in front of the plow. In her mouth was the harness she wore during the winter when she pulled the snow sled” (11). This introduces the reader to the lengths to which Searchlight will go for Little Willy. Her devotion to him is similarly echoed when she protects him from Mr. Snyder; she initially refuses to leave the little boy’s side and has to be commanded to stay outside of the house. Searchlight ultimately gives her life for Willy; her “heart burst[s]” with the effort and strain from the run. This symbolic end also symbolizes the immense love and affection that Searchlight feels for Little Willy; the strength of her adoration and devotion ultimately leads to her end.
Little Willy’s sacrifice is the most central to the story and the most evident. Little Willy cares for Grandfather and is determined to save him and the farm when both take the turn for the worst. This responsibility is above and beyond the capabilities of a child, but Little Willy never complains, taking these duties as his due. Little Willy and Searchlight make physical sacrifices; both toil away on the farm, run errands, and push themselves to the limit in order to protect their family. There are, however, emotional sacrifices as well. Little Willy, for example, seems to lose both his past and his future. The literal passing of Searchlight represents the metaphorical death of his childhood and his innocence, while the emptying of his college fund decreases what little chance he might have had of going to school. The sacrifices are signs and symptoms of love and devotion.
Society’s Failure to Care for People in Need
One such reason for Searchlight and Little Willy’s sacrifices is society’s ultimate failure to care for those in need. It would be all too easy to simply blame society and larger institutions for this failure, however, Little Willy and Grandfather likewise refuse moments of actual help. Throughout the novel, there are repeated moments where Little Willy could have, and should have, received aid for the farm’s situation. This theme appears throughout the text, beginning most clearly when Doc Smith explains to Willy what taxes are actually for. This moment is especially enlightening, as it is evident that Grandfather and Willy both firmly believe in the American Dream. The American Dream is one that presents itself throughout literature and history; that with hard work and independence, any person can improve their economic and social standings. This belief fuels the common ideal that any person can and should pull themselves up by their bootstraps––without the aid of any support or foundations, the individual is singularly responsible for their future. Little Willy says as much when he speaks with Doc Smith, saying, “Grandfather says we should take care of ourselves” (19). This reflects a previous scene when Willy refuses the help of Grandfather’s friend, even though they sorely needed it.
Doc Smith responds to Willy’s questions by explaining that taxes help people who are unable to take care of themselves, people “like your grandfather” (19). Instead of receiving aid, Little Willy is the one who ends up caring for his grandfather alone. The author hints at the possibility of institutional support in this scene and again when Willy attempts to get a loan from the bank. Mr. Foster has a vested interest in making sure the bank’s loan is paid, and he does not believe that Little Willy and the farm will ultimately be able to return a dime of the money. Little Willy thus relies on something entirely different: pure chance. By trying to work the system in order to earn the prize money from the sledding race, Little Willy and Stone Fox both display how there’s a lack of help provided for those in need. Stone Fox has been using the prize money from the races to purchase land for his people, for example, but the white settlers stole the land in the first place. Through their own means, Little Willy and Stone Fox have to find ways to navigate a system that fails to offer much, if any, help to vulnerable individuals.
Perseverance and Kindness as Vital Tenets of Success
The importance of perseverance and kindness is a theme in Stone Fox. The main catalyst for the beginning of the book remains a testament to this. By refusing to leave the bed, admit the reason behind his sudden loss of will to live, and his inability to help Little Willy save the farm, Grandfather has to rely on Willy for the strength to go on. Though he is undoubtedly older and Little Willy’s hero, Grandfather learns the lesson of perseverance from Little Willy. Little Willy is unwilling to give up, no matter how many adults around him tell him to do so. Doc Smith advises Little Willy to live with her while someone else cares for his grandfather; likewise, the banker, Lester, and other people around town all encourage Little Willy to sell the farm in hopes that they will make back the money to pay the taxes. Little Willy, however, does not believe that to be a feasible option.
Despite the narrowing number of choices available to him, Little Willy continues to try and find different ways to save the family farm. Searchlight similarly represents this theme of perseverance; her refusal to give up ends up costing her life, but they reach the finish line and win the race. Little Willy Would not have been able to pass the finish line at all had it not been for Stone Fox’s help.
Little Willy is kind to Stone Fox where the other people in town have only spread rumors about him and his alleged violence. Willy speaks to Stone Fox and is kind to the older man despite his worry that Willy was hurting his dogs. Willy is instead kind and gentle with not only Stone Fox’s Samoyed dogs, but also with Searchlight’s body. Little Willy does not abandon her once she dies; he does not rush to the finish line. Instead, Willy takes the time to pay his respects and thank her for all of her help. Upon seeing this, Stone Fox gives up his own chances at winning the race to help Willy. Perseverance and kindness are thus the primary two reasons why Willy succeeds in saving the farm. At the very end of the story, the entire town watches on as Little Willy carries Searchlight’s body over the finish line. None of them offer to help and are all taught the lesson of a little boy’s determination and strength.
