Chapter 9 Summary

When he was six years old, Palmer attended the Pigeon Shoot with Dorothy and her family. Palmer is pleased to introduce Dorothy to the mechanics of the event, surprising her with details culminating in the death of five thousand pigeons in one day. When Palmer makes the hideous sound of a pigeon's neck being snapped, Dorothy runs away in horror and Palmer follows with tears in his own eyes too.

Chapter 9 Analysis

Palmer tests his constitution by attending a second Pigeon Shoot and asserts his maturity over the napve Dorothy who has never witnessed the event before. The author uses irony to show Palmer's true feelings of distress after coolly explaining the event's details to the horrified Dorothy.