Greasy Lake by T.C. Boyle
We often judge people, places, and situations before we find out what they are really about. It may be an appearance that we judge by; or it may be a prior experience with a similar someone or something, that leads us to jump to conclusions. Sometimes we come to find our premature judgments were right on target, but often times we can be off. We may have preconceived notions about a place before we visit, only to find that it is not at all what we expected. Also, we may choose not to read a certain book because its' title doesn't sound appealing, without ever examining if the title gives away the actual story at all. Similarly, we may have heard a rumor about someone, which causes us to think of them in a certain way, before we ever actually make their acquaintance. Only to find after meeting them, that the idea we had of them was completely misleading. In T.C. Boyle's "Greasy Lake" (1985), the idea of 'judgment based upon appearance' not only keeps the story moving forward, but acts as a strong theme as we
After believing their car to be ruined, they find that the "tires were intact," and they are able to leave the scene of this dismal experience, and bring the story to a close. "And that was it for excitement: some junkie half-wit biker and a car freak pumping his girlfriend. The young men got their butts kicked, ruined a parents' car, and still didn't find "what we were looking for" (557). The appearance of the Greasy Lake lot doesn't stir up the boys' level of excitement, leading them to declare that there wasn't much of-interest to be found there. Ironically, one last judgment by the narrator-"my car was wrecked" (562)-again trudges the story along, but this time has some positive ramifications for the boys. Immediately after arriving, the narrator and his cohorts jump to early conclusions of how the evening at Greasy Lake will pan out. Thinking they have murdered this "bad greasy character" (558), the boys are now suddenly forced to run, and facing a lot more than they originally perceived from across the lot.
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