Analyse I want to know why:
Sherwood Anderson's short story "I Want to Know Why" begins with a description of the fifteen-year-old narrator's trip to Saratoga, New York. He and his three friends leave without telling their parents; they run away to seek the thrills of horse racing. But rather than expound on the daily adventures of the vacation or the reactions of the boys' parents when they return, the story focuses on a single, sad but important event. The narrator sees the horse trainer Jerry Tillford, a man he greatly admires, drunk and in the presence of a prostitute. The scene disturbs and confuses the young boy. "I Want to Know Why" is the story of a boy's tragic realization that people aren't always as good as they seem.
The Hero
The narrator looks up to Jerry Tillford because he is a successful horse trainer. The boy is infatuated with horses and has always dreamed of a career in which he could be around horses every day. He tells us, "When I was ten years old and saw I was growing to be big and couldn't be a rider I was so sorry I nearly died"(Anderson 3). He considers becoming a stable boy, but his "father wouldn't let me go into it"(3). But he hasn't given up all hope; now he spends his days "wanting to be a trainer or owner"(5).
The boy sees Tillford's horse, Sunstreak, as a symbol of beauty, strength, and honor. He considers that Tillford "had been watching and working with Sunstreak since the horse was a baby colt, had taught him to run," and he is filled with veneration(6). Sunstreak's majesty inspires a quiet moment of shared appreciation between the boy and the trainer, after which the boy relates, "I guess I loved the man as much as I did the horse"(6). He feels "close" to Jerry and states that he likes him "even more than I ever liked my own father"(6). Unfortunately, his faith in Jerry's character is somewhat misplaced.
The Fall
When the narrator watches Jerry Tillford through the window of the whorehouse, his spirits are crushed. His impeccable image of the trainer is destroyed before his eyes. The boy tell us, "He lied and bragged like a fool" about Sunstreak(7). He remembers how the drunken Jerry "swayed back and forth, and... kissed that woman"(7). This scene shocks the young boy.
Confusion and anger begin to take hold within the narrator. He recalls, "Then, all of a sudden, I began to hate that man"(7). His feelings are so strong, he feels he could "rush in the room and kill him"(7). The reader may find this notion to be a tad extreme, but the boy feels that Jerry, who has, in a single day, become a father figure of sorts, really let him down. The realization that a personal hero is not, in fact, as admirable as it once seemed can be devastating.
The title of the story is a manifestation of the boy's confusion and hurt. He has faith in Tillford, but his faith goes unrewarded. The implications of what the narrator witnesses are even more crushing than the scene itself; how many others who seem good are really bad? Sherwood Anderson's "I Want to Know Why" is the story of a young boy coming of age and waking up to a sad reality in this world: not everyone who appears to be decent is truly worthy of one's respect and trust.
Summary: In Sherwood Anderson's "I Want to Know Why", the narrator's love of horses grew from his boyhood wonder into a total love affair, so did his expectations. In learning the harsh truth, the narrator was forced to face the fact that his ideal of the perfect trainer was far better than the actual reality and that they are just men after all.
I Want to Know Why
The narrator is so awestruck with horses and horseracing that his throat hurts when he sees a really promising horse and he is certain that he "can tell a winner" (4). He considers his aching throat as a sure fire sign that the horse is a champion but in reality it is a symbol of much more. The narrator's throat hurting can be likened to the feeling of pride that swells up in a parent as her child takes her first step or graduates from high school. In addition, just like a parent who thinks her child can do no wrong, the narrator's vision of the perfect trainer is shattered when he witnesses the grim reality of the trainer's life.
The feeling of pride that washes over the narrator as he sees these horses is because he feels that "horse racing is in every breath you breathe" (2). Within the community he lives, everyone "who is anyone at all, likes horses" (1). Horses are in his blood. They consume his every thought and he is "just crazy about thoroughbred horses" (3). It is only natural for him to take some ownership of the horses that he spends so much time studying and watching. As part of his ownership, his sense of pride is overwhelming at times.
As his pride for the horses grows, the narrator almost begins a love affair with the horses. "They're beautiful. There isn't anything so lovely and clean and full of spunk as some race horses" (3). He is totally smitten with the whole idea of the horses and even compares one, Sunstreak, to "a girl you think about but never see" (5). There is no mention of a girlfriend in the story but the language he uses to describe the horses is sensual and erotic at times. "He is hard all over and lovely too. When you look at his head you want to kiss him" (5).
As the story progresses, the narrator's love affair intensifies. He begins to not only love the horse but his trainer, Jerry Tillford, as well and then "there wasn't anything in the world but the man and the horse" (6) and the narrator. When he switches his thoughts to the trainer he personalizes his feelings, and "liked him that afternoon even more than [he] ever liked [his] own father" (6). Those are very strong emotions. He had idolized this man. Therefore, when he follows him and observes him with that "bad woman" (7), his ideal of Jerry is destroyed. Until that time, the narrator had lived with the belief that trainers where these godlike men who were able to train these heavenly animals.
As the narrator's love of horses grew from his boyhood wonder into a total love affair, so did his expectations. In learning the harsh truth, the narrator was forced to face the fact that his ideal of the perfect trainer was far better than the actual reality and that they are just men after all. With that in mind, the honeymoon was over and "it spoils looking at horses and smelling things... and everything" (7).