summary on jody
This is Jody's Fawn
-Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
I
Jody cannot get the fawn out of his mind
Jodys father, Penny, was resting as he had been bitten by a rattlesnake just the previous day. Penny had saved himself by killing a doe to use its heart and liver to draw out the poison. Jody checked on his father who told him he was better and felt proud of him for keeping calm in the difficult situation.
Decision to bring the fawn home
Jody requested Penny to allow him to get the fawn home as it would die without its mother. It must be hungry and frightened. Jody would give it his own share of milk and it would grow up soon to eat leaves and nuts. His father agreed that they had to be grateful for the does sacrifice and help the fawn.
The doctor and Mill-wheel supported this decision and finally Jodys mother agreed on the condition that Jody would give the fawn his share of milk. Mill-wheel volunteered to give Jody a ride into the forest on his horse. Jody knew it was a male fawn as the spots on his body were all in a line. On a female fawn, they were haphazard.
II
Jodys resolution to look for the fawn independently
Jody guided Mill-wheel to ride north as the doe had been killed there. He wanted to proceed alone on foot from there as he did not want Mill-wheel to see his elation if he found the fawn. And, if he did not find the fawn, he did not want his disappointment to be witnessed. He told Mill-wheel he would walk the rest of the distance as the plant growth was too thick for a horse to walk through. His companion was scared that Jody could be bitten by a snake or could lose his way. But Jody was confident of the directions as the tall pine tree acted like a compass to identify directions.
Scavengers feast on the does carcass
Jody came upon buzzards feeding on the dead body of the doe. The sand showed footprints of carnivorous cats. They had left the doe to be devoured by buzzards as they killed fresh. He could not see the fawn or its footprints as the previous nights rain had washed away all such signs.
III
Discovery of the fawn
Suddenly, Jody came upon the fawn that made no attempt to get up and run. It was shaking and looking at Jody with big, appealing eyes. It smelled Jody and allowed him to touch its skin. Jody was excited and approached it,moving like an animal on all fours. The fawns skin was smooth, shiny and clean. Jody picked it up high as it had very long legs. Jody was scared that the fawn might protest by kicking. But, he was surprised how easily it allowed Jody to carry it through the thick growth of the forest shrubs. Jodys heart raced and he walked on till he reached the road that led towards his home. The fawn just looked at him and bleated.
The fawns trust in Jody
Jody remembered that a fawn would follow any person who had carried it. After resting for a while, Jody started walking again, urging the fawn to follow him. The fawn walked feebly and cried out to Jody. Jody understood that the fawn wanted to come with him and he felt so happy that he wanted to hug and play with it. But, he controlled himself for fear of scaring it. He carried it quietly in his arms.
Welcome burden
Though the fawn was heavy and his arms ached, Jody could have walked all day as he was overjoyed at the fawns acceptance of him. He carried it for most of the way, except for a short while when the fawn followed him. Jody put down the fawn to open the latch on the door of his house and thought he would surprise everybody with the fawn following him into the house. But the fawn refused to go up the stairs and finally Jody carried it to his father.
Jodys happiness at getting a companion
Penny felt good to see both the fawn and Jodys eyes shining with happiness. Jody tried to feed the fawn milk from a gourd. Eventually, he succeeded in doing so by dipping his fingers in the milk and letting the fawn suck on them. The fawn learned to drink from the gourd with Jodys fingers dipped into it. Jody was overjoyed at the touch of the fawns tongue against his hand. The fawn moved its tail and steadily drank up all the milk.