![]() ![]() ![]() Bryon explains in the first chapter that he and Mark have been best friends their whole lives. While Hinton shows the value of brotherhood-its loyalty, support, and protection-she also suggests that when brothers betray one another, brotherhood is difficult, if not impossible, to rebuild.Įarly on in the story, Hinton illustrates how Mark and Bryon’s brotherly bond is in part about physical protection. But when Bryon and Mark betray one another in big and small ways, their brotherly bond permanently shatters, and the boys develop a seething hatred for one another that runs deeper than anything they feel for other people. Instead, Bryon and Mark see brotherhood as an irreversible pact wherein they are unconditionally loyal to each other-something that is integral to their survival in 1960s Tulsa, Oklahoma, which is overrun by gang violence. To them, brotherhood isn’t limited to biological brothers. Although Bryon and Mark are not actually related to one another, Mark lives with Bryon and his mother as an adoptive part of the family, and they often tell people that they’re brothers. ![]()
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