50 pages • 1 hour read
Chris CrutcherRunning Loose
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 1983A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 1-4Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 1 Summary
The novel opens with protagonist Louie Banks reminiscing about the start of his senior year at his high school in Trout, Idaho. Back then, he dreamed of a triumphant football season, graduation, and pursuing journalism in college. Louie plays eight-man football, and his team hasn’t lost a game in three years. He plays with his best friend, Carter Sampson, a quarterback, and the school bully, Boomer Cowans, a running back. Carter and Boomer are naturally talented at football, and Louie sees them destined for college scholarships, unlike him. Louie reflects that he feels sorry for Boomer, who pins his hopes solely on football: “If he doesn’t make it playing ball […] he’s going to be setting chokers and top-loading his old man’s logging truck for the rest of his life” (8). Despite this understanding, Louie admits to fearing Boomer. He believes Boomer hates him and fears that any slight provocation could escalate into physical violence. He recalls a past incident where Boomer’s father violently punished him on his birthday for lying.
Louie wrestles with his insecurities. He sees himself as timid, a “wussy, to put it in Boomer’s language” (11). He admits to worrying excessively about others’ opinions, avoiding romantic relationships out of fear of causing girls harm, and holding back in football to avoid hurting smaller players. He also acknowledges his lack of exceptional athletic ability may hinder his success in football because he’s not the fastest or the biggest.
Chapter 2 Summary
Present-day Louie reflects on his past relationship with Becky, acknowledging that she was always out of his league. He then states that he will talk about her later in the novel. Flashing back to the beginning of his senior year, Louie and his friend Carter head to the Buckhorn, the restaurant where Louie works part-time as a cleaner. Carter offers to help Louie and hopes to speed up the cleaning process so they can train together afterward. When they arrive, they discover glasses tipped over and dried blood on the bar. Working together, Carter and Louie clean up. Louie’s boss, Dakota, comes in as they’re finishing up. He tells the boys there was a brawl at the restaurant the previous night. Carter realizes he forgot his cleats at the gym and goes to retrieve them, telling Louie to meet him later at the field. Dakota enquires about the team’s prospects for the season, and Louie admits that he’s afraid of messing up. Dakota encourages him to “go in there and kick some butt” (19), and Louie feels determined not to disappoint him.
Louie joins Carter at the field, where they intend to run some pass patterns ahead of the first practice of the year, scheduled for Monday. Carter reassures Louie that things will be okay with Boomer as long as he knows how to handle him. Carter then points out that Boomer can’t afford to be at odds with him: “I mean, who gives him the ball?” (20). Louie agrees with Carter’s reasoning, recognizing that his friend always seems to know exactly what he’s doing.
Chapter 3 Summary
Louie reflects on his fortunate relationship with his parents. He contrasts their relationship with his friends’ challenging family dynamics: Carter’s father has a new family and is largely absent, Becky is living with her father after a divorce, as her mother is “a case for the books” (22), and Boomer’s father is known for his violent tendencies. By contrast, Louie’s father, Norm, is calm and supportive, always ready to lend a hand to those in need. His mother, Brenda, is more emotionally expressive and offers her family validation and love. Despite occasional disagreements, Louie describes their conflicts as affectionate. He expresses gratitude for his family’s support and nonjudgmental attitude throughout his senior year.
On Monday, Louie and his football team start two-a-day workouts. These initial practices of the season are notorious for their intensity, and Coach Lednecky demands excellence from the team. Louie’s goal this season is to become better than Boomer. Lednecky delivers a motivational speech at the beginning of the first session, emphasizing the importance of an undefeated season: “Nothing can stand in our way this year, gentlemen,” he declares (25). He then outlines the team rules: be home by 10 pm, no drinking or smoking, girlfriends come second. The workout begins under the guidance of Coach Lednecky and a new addition, Coach Madison. Louie feels physically prepared because he and Carter have been working out all summer. Still, Louie is disappointed when Boomer outpaces him during the workout. Boomer deliberately trips Louie, causing him to stumble. Nonetheless, he remains optimistic about his overall performance compared to the rest of the team.
Chapter 4 Summary
When school starts, two-a-day workouts give way to actual football practice. This year, Louie has a crush on Becky, one of the cheerleaders. He acknowledges that “every guy in school [is] in love with her” (36), but he is particularly captivated by her. He talks to her every chance he gets and tries to impress her on the field. One day, Becky surprises Louie by approaching him at the lockers and asking him if he’d like to have a Coke with her after the game tomorrow. Shocked, Louie accepts her invitation.
The following day, Louie’s team secures a victory. Becky waits for Louie by the gym door and congratulates him. She then suggests they go have dinner instead of grabbing a Coke and offers to pay. Louie agrees but asks her not to tell Boomer she paid for the meal. Becky assures him she would never do that. Before dinner, they go for a scenic drive in a reservoir out of town. As Louie drives, Becky puts her hand on his leg. Louie asks Becky why she asked him on a date when she could have any guy in the school, including Carter. Becky responds metaphorically: “Because if I were an animal in these woods and I saw you here, I’d come up to you” (44). Louie is satisfied with this answer. Later, they get burgers, and Becky pays as she promised.
Chapters 1-4 Analysis
The initial four chapters of Running Loose establish the novel’s setting, characters, and key themes. The narrative employs a flashback structure, with present-day Louie reflecting on the beginning of his senior year. This technique creates a sense of foreboding. From the opening paragraph, Louie hints at a tumultuous turn of events, suggesting that the year could have ended smoothly “if Becky had stayed around or if I hadn’t quit the football team and made myself look like the Jerk of the Universe” (6). This setup generates an atmosphere of impending conflict and sets the stage for the unfolding drama.
The motif of violence pervades the narrative: Trout, Idaho, is depicted as a place where violence is commonplace. In Chapter 2, for instance, Louie and Carter find blood at the Buckhorn restaurant following a brawl the night before. Football practice itself is portrayed as a physically demanding and aggressive ordeal. Louie notes the physical toll of two-a-days, where some players struggle to cope and end up vomiting. Coach Lednecky enforces strict rules, warning the players: “Break the rules, you’re off the team” (28). Furthermore, violence looms large in Boomer’s life because his father frequently subjects him to physical punishment. Louie recalls an incident from his childhood in which Boomer’s father punished him for lying by physically abusing him and throwing away his birthday presents. Boomer himself is described as intimidating, “strong and mean enough to eat me if he catches me” (26). His use of aggressive language, such as “wussy,” underscores his propensity for violence.
Early in the narrative, therefore, Boomer is established as the antagonist. Louie admits that Boomer “scares [him] to death” (8) and acknowledges that, were it not for his friendship with Carter, Boomer would have beat him up years ago. Portrayed as big, dumb, and mean, Boomer seems to have a sole objective: to make others feel bad. He trips Louie during practice and, jealous of Becky’s blossoming relationship with Louie, lies about having slept with her. However, Boomer’s character is complex. Louie admits to feeling sorry for him; football is Boomer’s sole opportunity for a better life. The narrative suggests his violent behavior is a product of his tumultuous relationship with his abusive father. This nuanced portrayal adds depth to Boomer’s character, blurring the lines between antagonist and victim.
Louie, the protagonist and narrator, emerges as an introspective and empathetic character. He worries about other people’s opinions, confessing, “I spend about half my life worrying about hurting other people’s feelings and wondering if they like me” (11). Despite acknowledging his limitations as a football player compared to Carter and Boomer, he remains dedicated, spending his entire summer working out to improve his physical condition. When Becky asks him out, Louie is taken aback, recognizing that she could have any guy in school. Still, Becky sees something in Louie that she doesn’t see in others. She has an innate connection to him, almost primal: She explains that she would come up to him if she were an animal. She, therefore, perceives Louie as someone deserving of trust. Through Louie’s characterization, some of the novel’s central themes are introduced, although they have not been fully explored at this point. The theme of Coping with Grief and Loss is hinted at—the narrative suggests that something significant happened during senior year, and Louie acknowledges his parents’ supportive role during that time. Additionally, the pivotal role of football in Louie and his friends’ lives introduces The Role of Sports in Shaping Identity as a significant theme.
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By Chris Crutcher
