42 pages • 1 hour read
Betsy ByarsThe Midnight Fox
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1968A 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 7-9Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 7 Summary: “Discovery at the Field”
Over the next four days, Tom goes to the creek and waits for the black fox. He is not naturally patient, but he learns to appreciate the beautiful nature surrounding him and daydreams about inventing a new color that is inspired by the golden-green of the meadow grass. He is so deep in his daydream that he nearly misses the black fox who glides across the field, pounces on a mouse, catches it, and carries it away.
Chapter 8 Summary: “The Forest Chase”
Tom is fascinated by the fox and compares his fixation with her to Petie’s obsession with Monopoly. Acting on his gut instinct, Tom follows the fox through the forest. He hears her bark and senses that she is asking him to follow her, to somehow save her, but instead, he ends up in a field full of cows back at the farm. Tom tells Hazeline that he followed a fox who called to him, and Hazeline explains that the fox was probably luring him away from her den. Tom shares that she is a black fox. This piques Hazeline’s interest, and she tells him that she has only seen a black fox as a lovely fur coat.
Chapter 9 Summary: “Uncle Fred”
Tom is unsure of how to talk to Uncle Fred, a large, “powerfully built” man who swims in the lake every day. Neither Tom nor Fred can think of what to say to each other, so long awkward silences are common. Tom dreads the day that Fred forces him to join the daily lake swim. He dreams up a headline that reads, “BOY DROWNS—GIRL PHOTOGRAPHS IT!” (59), and he pictures Hazeline with her camera on the shore, capturing the moment. Hazeline interrupts Tom’s thoughts by telling Fred that Tom saw a black fox. She asks about the difference between red and black foxes. Fred explains that black foxes are genetic “accidents” and are quite rare. He says that they might be smarter than red foxes; he has only seen one, a long time ago. At supper, there is a letter from Petie waiting for Tom. Petie has sent Tom a questionnaire full of fun and silly questions that Petie made up to figure out personality types. Tom goes to bed happily thinking about a questionnaire he can invent. He is also happy to have seen the fox. He thinks, “[S]eeing something beautiful always [makes] me feel good” (64) and remembers that his parents had to pull him away from a museum with a beautiful old ship that captivated him.
Chapters 7-9 Analysis
In these chapters, Tom is finally Embracing Growth Through New Experiences as he begins to appreciate the beauty of nature and the value of stillness. Rather than dwelling on what he is missing back in the city with Petie, Tom now finds new things to marvel about, such as the golden-green color of the grass in the meadow. He also learns that patience brings great rewards, for the black fox comes close to him and seems to accept him. To his own surprise, Tom realizes that he is not “bored” while sitting in the field. As he reads, writes to Petie, or simply daydreams, he incorporates the beauty of the world around him into his imaginative fantasies. Tom is Connecting With Nature in creative ways as he imagines becoming famous for inventing a new color after noticing how beautiful the colors of the field are.
When Tom likens the fascination he feels for the fox with the fascination that Petie had for Monopoly, his observations highlight the Contrast Between Urban and Rural Life, but he also realizes that it is possible to feel the same enthusiasm about nature as it is about his favorite activities at home in the city. Tom uses a similar pattern when he expresses his feelings about the fox, for he states “It was a new game. The rules I didn’t exactly know yet; all I had so far was a fierce desire to play. My father once said this could be the most important thing in any game” (50). Surrounded by a new world, Tom is willing to learn the rules of this “game” with the fox. He senses that the fox wants him to follow her, so he does—acquiescing to the fox’s “move” in this imaginary game. After Hazeline explains that the fox was luring him away from her den, Tom knows that next time he needs to wait and ignore her call: his game move.
As a contrast to the easy familiarity that Tom feels with the natural world, Tom feels intimidated by Fred, who is large, powerful, and quiet. Given the recent discussion about foxes, Tom is also painfully aware that Fred’s reaction to hearing about the fox will be the opposite to his own. Fred loves hunting and sees foxes as predators to be exterminated, while Tom sees the fox as a thing of beauty that should be observed, appreciated, and protected. When Fred explains the differences between black and red foxes, it is mostly in the context of hunting, for he asserts, “A hunter’ll do anything to get something rare” (60). This moment further highlights the Contrast Between Urban and Rural Life, for the harsh realities of rural life are clearly jarring to this young boy from the city. Tom’s sensitive character is underscored both by his self-confessed love of beautiful things and by his fear of appearing inadequate in front of Fred. Likewise, Tom’s dread of having to swim with Uncle Fred is so severe that he imagines all the worst-case scenarios in detail. Despite his unease around Fred, however, Tom is embracing new growth and finding deep enjoyment in the details of farm life. By being open-minded to the idea of doing “nothing” other than exploring nature, Tom experiences the personal growth that his father told him about, and which Tom initially dismissed.
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