Monster Thursday, July 9th Summary & Analysis

Summary: Thursday, July 9th

In a long note, Steve confesses his discouragement because O’Brien says things look bad for him, and he describes his feelings about how the trial is going. Steve tells about Acie, a fellow prisoner who expects a verdict that morning. Acie starts crying, and Steve wants to cry with him. He thinks also about Mr. Nesbitt, the murder victim, and O’Brien, who he wishes could see into his heart. Steve records what O’Brien has told him about her life and career. He describes the courtroom guards’ talk about their kids and the Yankees. Steve writes about sitting next to King and remembers how he once wanted to be tough like King. Now King is trying to scare him with looks. Steve laughs because King can’t make him feel more scared than he already is. Some students come to observe the trial, and Steve sees that they look away from him.

In Steve’s screenplay, Petrocelli resumes her questioning of Osvaldo Cruz. Briggs gets Osvaldo to admit that he also took part in the crime and that the prosecutor offered him a deal in return for his testimony. Under questioning by O’Brien, Osvaldo admits that he has beat up his girlfriend, that he is a member of the Diablos gang, and that to belong to this gang you have to cut or injure someone where it shows. O’Brien then questions Osvaldo’s claim to be afraid of Bobo Evans.

In the visitors’ area at the Detention Center, Steve talks to Mr. Harmon. Steve says he did nothing wrong and asks if his father believes him. Mr. Harmon does not answer. Mr. Harmon talks about his hopes that Steve would go to Morehouse and play football and about how he never dreamed his son would get in trouble. Steve asks after his mother. Mr. Harmon tells Steve everything will be all right. Then the scene blurs, and Mr. Harmon breaks down sobbing. In his notebook, Steve writes about how terrible it feels to see his father cry.

The scene fades to an exterior shot in Steve’s neighborhood. The camera scans a rooftop homeless encampment and other signs of poverty. Steve listens to two middle-aged women gossiping about the drugstore robbery and murder. The women agree it’s a great shame and talk about moving away from the neighborhood. The scene shifts to a television screen, where a newscaster reports on the shooting. The camera cuts to Steve’s apartment, where Steve is staring at the television in shock.

Two weeks later, in the kitchen of the Harmons’ apartment, Mrs. Harmon comes in with the groceries, bringing the news that the people who killed the drugstore owner have been caught. The family turns on the television and hears about the arrest of Bobo Evans. Detectives Williams and Karyl visit the apartment and ask Steve to come with them to the police station. Mrs. Harmon protests and insists on coming along. She goes to get her coat. Jerry, Steve’s younger brother, watches as the detectives handcuff Steve and hustle him out the door and into a patrol car. Mrs. Harmon rushes after them but realizes she doesn’t know where they are taking Steve.

Analysis: Thursday, July 9th

Steve’s entry on the fourth day of his trial is much longer and more detailed than usual, as if he is trying to put off the moment when he has to endure another dreaded day in court. Steve forms a bond with Acie because Acie is waiting for a verdict in his armed robbery case. When Acie cries at the thought of being in jail, Steve empathizes with him, wanting to cry as well. Steve adds notes about his mother; Mr. Nesbitt, the victim of the crime; and O’Brien, his lawyer. He records specific details about the guards’ mundane conversation and King’s aftershave, all trivial matters. These details help make Steve’s situation vividly real, underscoring his separation from everyday life and encouraging the reader to empathize with his suffering.

The notebook entry focuses the story on Steve’s point of view, which is changing in response to the trauma of his imprisonment and trial. Steve was once afraid of King. Now he laughs at the sight of King in handcuffs, trying to scare Steve with looks. Steve writes that here, a person can’t really scare another with just a look. His comment reveals bravado as well as irony. According to the police, King has already accused Steve of committing the murder. Steve is not scared by a look, but he is afraid of King’s potential testimony in court. Steve already has reason to fear the testimony of Osvaldo Cruz. Briggs and O’Brien, the two defense lawyers, easily discredit Cruz and establish that he is an unreliable witness. Nevertheless, Cruz’s testimony harms Steve’s case because it associates Steve with gang violence in the minds of the jury.

In his notebook entry, Steve insists that he is not a bad person, as if he is trying to convince himself, and in the painful scene between Steve and Mr. Harmon, Steve also tries to convince his father. The scene reveals how Steve’s actions have alienated him from his own family. Steve realizes his father has started seeing him as a monster. In his notebook entry about his father, Steve acknowledges that everyone is mentally not well from trauma and pain. He is starting to face and admit the wider consequences of his actions.

Steve’s screenplay skillfully cuts back and forth between prison, neighborhood, and courtroom and from past and present, gradually adding details about Steve and the crime of which he stands accused. Earlier in the screenplay, flashback scenes established that Steve belongs to a film club and goes to a special high school. The scene between Steve and his father reveals that Mr. Harmon is a graduate of Morehouse College and has high hopes for his son. These details change the reader’s perception of Steve, who up until now has appeared only in prison, on the streets of a rundown neighborhood, and in a courtroom, accused of robbery and murder.

The flashback scenes of Steve’s hearing about the crime and his arrest help complete the timeline of the crime. Steve reacts to hearing gossip about the murder with fear and shock. After hearing about Bobo Evans’s arrest, Steve lies on his bed, with his eyes open but not seeing anything. Steve’s reactions strongly suggest that he knows something about the crime.

The arrest scene gives Steve new identities, as a suspect and a prisoner. In not allowing Mrs. Harmon to go with her minor son, the officers violate her civil rights. Mrs. Harmon speaks up for herself and Steve, but the officers take Steve away without telling her where they are going. Mrs. Harmon and Jerry, like Steve, feel powerless.

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