A Day No Pigs Would Die
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Key Facts
full title · A Day No Pigs Would Die
author · Robert Newton Peck
type of work · Autobiographical fiction
genre · Rural American Novel
language · English
date of first publication · 1972
publisher of first publication · Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
narrator · Robert Peck
point of view · First person
tone · Lighthearted, optimistic
tense · Present
setting (time) · Late 1930s
setting (place) · Learning, Vermont
protagonist · Robert Peck
rising action · Robert receives a pig as a gift from a neighbor. He and the pig become best friends.
climax · Pinky has to be killed so that the family will have enough to eat in the winter.
falling action · Robert's father dies.
themes · The trials of becoming a man; the difficulty of being an outsider; free will versus expectations; acceptance of the inevitability of life
motifs · Death; education; consistency; possession
symbols · Haven's tools; Haven's signature
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