On the Sidewalk Bleeding
![]() | This article has multiple issues. Please help or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
"On The Sidewalk Bleeding" | |
---|---|
Author | Evan Hunter |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Tragedy, short story |
Published in | (1st release) |
Publication type | Periodical |
Media type | Print (Magazine) |
Publication date | 1956 |
On the Sidewalk Bleeding is a short story by American author Ed McBain, also known as Evan Hunter. The story was first published in Manhunt magazine in 1956.[1] Its protagonist, a sixteen-year-old boy named Andy, bleeds to death on the sidewalk after being stabbed below the ribs by a member of a rival gang. The story is commonly used as teaching material in elementary schools, high schools and colleges.[2][3][4][5] According to Evan Hunter, this was one of his most anthologized stories, together with First Offence and The Last Spin.[6]
Summary[]
The short story takes place during the last minutes of 16-year-old Andy's life. Andy is a member of a gang called "The Royals," as shown by a purple jacket he is wearing. He leaves his girlfriend, Laura, at a dance to buy a pack of cigarettes and is stabbed by a member of a rival gang, The Guardians, in the process; he is slow to realize the severity of the wound due to ignorance and shock. Andy eventually realizes that he is slowly dying. Due to him being unable to speak and lays helplessly in an alley. A drunk man comes down the alley and assumes Andy is also drunk and staggers off, telling him that he is lucky and he won't call the police. A young boy named Freddie and his girlfriend Angela notice him, but refrain from helping due to fear of getting involved in gang warring. An elderly lady digs through trash cans nearby but does not hear him call out because she is partially deaf, and the sound of rain splattering the trash cans is also drowning out his voice. In his final moments, Andy realizes the Royals jacket cost him his life and, with the last of his strength, he shrugs off the jacket. A few minutes after midnight, Angela leaves the dance to find him and, after discovering his lifeless body, finds a cop. The cop notices Andy's jacket and says, "A Royal huh?" to which Laura iterates that “His name was Andy.” The cop ignores her and repeats “A Royal," and writes on his clack pad.
References[]
- ^ E. E. MacDonald; Ed McBain and Evan Hunter (2012) A Literary Companion. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers: Jefferson, North Carolina.
- ^ Jay Cline, Ken Williams (1969) Voices in literature, language, and composition, Book 3, Ginn and Company. p. 103
- ^ Rose Wassman, Lee Ann Rinsky (1999) Effective reading in a changing world, Longman. ISBN 978-0130115799, p. 99
- ^ Brenda D. Smith (2005) Bridging the Gap, Longman; 8 edition. ISBN 978-0321416759 p. 191
- ^ Barbara Ruth Johnson (January 1975). "Resources for the Teaching of English: 1975". The English Journal. 64 (1): 84���85.
- ^ Ed McBain (2006) Learning to Kill, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 978-0151012220, p. 452
- Works by Evan Hunter
- American short stories
- 1956 short stories
- 1950s short story stubs