Nothing But The Truth

The chapter opens with a series of negative messages from strangers offended by Ms. Narwin’s apparent treatment of Philip. Early that morning, Drs. Seymour and Doane discuss the situation. Dr. Seymour is worried about the possible impact the controversy could have on the school’s funding and the increasing pressure he is feeling to punish Ms. Narwin. Dr. Doane insists that he must support Ms. Narwin, however. Dr. Seymour ends the conversation by asking Dr. Doane to send Ms. Narwin’s personnel file over to his office.

As Philip prepares to go to school that morning after having served his suspension, he tells his parents that he is nervous about how other students may react to him. Mr. Malloy expresses surprise at this, since Philip previously told him that the other students dislike Ms. Narwin as well. Philip brushes off his father’s advice to treat the day like a race by getting a quick start. Philip has heard this story many times before and cuts his father off.

Philip walks to school that morning with Ken, who asks once again why Philip did not go out for the track team. When Ken asks if Philip’s refusal to try out is because of some anger toward the coach, Philip tells Ken that he cannot run track because of the low grade he received in Ms. Narwin’s class. Ken asks if that is the root of Philip’s anger toward Ms. Narwin. When Philip tells Ken about his plan to ask Ms. Narwin for extra work to pull up his grade, Ken suggests that Ms. Narwin may be angry with him at this point and refuse.

That morning, Dr. Doane meets with Ms. Narwin. She tells Ms. Narwin that the school has received hundreds of letters and telegrams (most of them negative), that the school has put out a statement about the controversy, that it might be best if Ms. Narwin takes the day off, and that Philip has been moved to another class for English. Ms. Narwin argues that the statement fails to support her and that the decision to move Philip sends the wrong message. When Dr. Doane protests that she has to be “evenhanded,” Ms. Narwin responds, “‘He’s a student. I’m a teacher. Hands are not meant to be even’”(148). Ten minutes later, Allison confronts Philip. Everyone, she tells him, believes his actions to be unfair to Ms. Narwin, whom she describes as being popular with the students.

According to a memo from Dr. Seymour:

It is the practice in all Harrison schools that during morning exercises the national anthem is played, part of our program in support of traditional American values. There is no rule that prohibits a student from singing along if he/she so desires. The Harrison School District is pleased to encourage appropriate displays of patriotism. It is the responsibility of our classroom teachers to monitor student behavior in this regard”(149).

In homeroom that morning, Mr. Lunser teases Philip by asking if he wants to sing the national anthem, and the other students chime in to ask him to sing. Philip refuses, however.

Robert Duval, the reporter from the St. Louis newspaper, calls Dr. Doane and asks if it would be possible to talk now that Dr. Seymour has released a statement that seems unfavorable to Ms. Narwin. Duval wants to hear the teacher’s side of the story, but Dr. Doane stalls and says that she would need to ask Ms. Narwin. Duval closes by saying that he will even fly out to get the real story.

As Philip walks to class after homeroom, his classmates tease him by calling him “Uncle Sam,” and one person even tells him that there is a rumor that the real motivation for Philip’s actions was that he is failing Ms. Narwin’s class. Additional telegrams praising Philip’s patriotism arrive at the school. Meanwhile, Dr. Seymour meets with Ted Griffen to reassure him that the school is deserving of funding and not opposed to patriotism in students.

Dr. Seymour even shares a small piece of Ms. Narwin’s application for professional development funds to take a graduate class, specifically the passage in which she writes that she sometimes feels that she has been teaching so long that she is “‘out of touch with contemporary teaching’” (156); Dr. Seymour uses this out-of-context passage to support his characterization of Ms. Narwin as an old teacher who has taught too long. When Griffen identifies teacher tenure as the problem, Dr. Seymour agrees and asks what the two men can do about it.

At lunchtime, Philip sits alone. When one student comes up to him to ask if it is true that Philip is going to be on television, Philip insults him and tells him to leave him be. Over in the faculty lunchroom, Mr. Benison, a fellow teacher, tells Ms. Narwin that everyone is upset about what is happening. He has gotten several calls, in fact, but has told everyone that Ms. Narwin certainly did not mean for the situation to devolve as it has. Ms. Narwin is offended by the implication that she is somehow at fault, and when she asks Mr. Benison to clarify the meaning of his comments, he reminds her that the controversy may have an impact on the approval of the new school budget.

An hour later, Philip comes into Ms. Narwin’s English class to ask about the possibility of receiving extra work to improve his grade. She reminds him that he is no longer in her class and raises her voice to insist that he leave immediately. At the end of the school day, Philip meets with Coach Jamison to tell him about his unsuccessful effort. The coach tells Philip this outcome is no surprise given what Philip has done to Ms. Narwin. He tells Philip, “‘[y]ou did a number on Ms. Narwin. […] She’s a good person. You have to be a team player. Haven’t you heard me say that? So you can’t just come around now and start asking me for things. It just doesn’t work that way’”(161). He suggests perhaps things will blow over by next year.

Later that afternoon, Ms. Narwin meets with Dr. Doane, who tells her that the superintendent managed to find the funds to pay for the graduate class Ms. Narwin wanted to take. Dr. Doane then delivers the news that the superintendent wants to put Ms. Narwin on paid administrative leave for the remainder of the term in order to allow things to cool off. Ms. Narwin protests that the superintendent wants to get rid of her, and she refuses to accept the time off. When Dr. Doane insists that Ms. Narwin needs to see things from the perspective of the administrators, Ms. Narwin says she thought that the administrators were on her side, that there was no difference in perspective. Dr. Doane tells her that there is deep concern about the outcome of the budget vote in light of the controversy.

That night before dinner, Mrs. Malloy tells her husband that Philip seemed upset—almost teary—when he arrived home from school and wasn’t interested in the pile of supportive telegrams he received. Mrs. Malloy wonders if they should consider sending Philip to the school district where her sister lives. Mr. Malloy goes to talk to Philip at his wife’s request. At the same time, Ms. Narwin calls her sister and tells her she has no idea what she should do. When Mr. Malloy attempts to talk to Philip, Philip refuses to let him come into his room and tells him he has no idea what he should do.

In a speech that night, Ted Griffen brags to his audience that he managed to secure a solution to the problem between Philip and Ms. Narwin. Philip has been switched to another class, and Ms. Narwin “will get a needed refresher course in our values and return to her duties next year better able to teach”(165). With this problem resolved, Griffen says that he supports the passage of the new budget. Twenty minutes later, Philip writes in his journal, “Things stink. And it’s all so unfair. Nobody takes my side. They all think Narwin’s great. Nobody pays any attention to what she did to me. Coach Jamison won’t let me on the team”(166).

At 9:30 p.m., Robert Duval, the reporter from the St. Louis newspaper, talks on the phone with Ms. Narwin. He tells her that the story he has heard has some inconsistencies. For example, Dr. Doane had previously told him that Ms. Narwin was one of her best teachers. The story seems ‘‘‘one-sided,’” and she agrees, saying that ‘‘‘[p]eople seem to believe that this boy is…rather special. Nobody seems to want to pay any attention to what actually happened’” and that she has been asked to resign (167). Ms. Narwin agrees to do an interview.