42 pages • 1 hour read
Orbiting Jupiter
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Chapter 5
Chapter 5 Summary
When Coach Swieteck is gone for the day, Jay and the other eighth grade boys attack Joseph in the locker room. Jack realizes that something is wrong when he and Ernie stay behind to clean up the gym equipment. Jack runs to the locker room to find Jay on the floor with a bleeding nose; two of Jay’s friends are shoving Joseph against the lockers. Joseph signals for Jack to leave, but when Jay gets back onto his feet, Jack shoves him. Jay hits the nearby lockers and falls to the floor again. Jack hurts the other two boys before the substitute teacher intervenes.
Mr. Canton berates Jack for getting involved in the fight. Mr. and Mrs. Hurd do the same when he gets home from school, reminding Jack not to blindly follow Joseph. Mr. Hurd admits to Jack that he too would have gotten involved if he were in Jack’s position. When Joseph comes into their room that night, he thanks Jack: “No one’s ever had my back before. Except Maddie” (100).
The school suspends Joseph for the fight, but several of his teachers arrive at the farm to tutor him so he can keep up with his classes Over the winter break, Jack and Joseph go to the library for the sequel to Octavian Nothing. There, Jay and his friends pass them on snowmobiles and call out to Joseph. The weather turns even colder over break. Joseph opens up to Jack about Maddie; he talks about her almost constantly. Jack, Joseph, and Mr. Hurd cut down a Christmas tree on Christmas Eve and decorate it in the house. There’s an ornament on the tree for every year Jack has been alive; Mrs. Hurd gives an ornament to Joseph.
On Christmas Eve, the Hurds and Joseph go to the First Congregational church for service. Joseph has never been to a church service before. The reverend tells the Biblical story of Joseph, who took care of Mary, mother of Jesus, during her pregnancy and at the birth of Jesus. After the service, Joseph meets the reverend. He asks him if the whole story is true, asking specifically about the angels. The reverend believes the Bible story is true, but when the reverend says angels are “with us when bad things happen,” Joseph asks, “Then where the hell were they?” (112).
The Hurds and Joseph open their presents on Christmas day. Joseph receives a copy of the book Walden as well as a card from Mr. and Mrs. Hurd. In the card, they have written that they want to help him find Jupiter. For the first time, Joseph hugs Mrs. Hurd and allows Mr. Hurd to touch him without recoiling.
Chapter 5 Analysis
Jack’s transformation into a more active protagonist is complete when he decides to intervene in Joseph’s fight with Jay. After hearing Joseph’s backstory, Jack feels a stronger connection to Joseph, and he feels protective of his friend. Though Joseph has frequently acted defiantly in his life, the locker room fight is the first time Jack has ever behaved in such a way. Jack defies the wishes of his friends, who want to keep him away from the fight; he also defies Joseph, who signals for Jack to leave the locker room. For Jack, his decision to fight on behalf of Joseph represents a moral awakening that has spurned him to action.
As people close to Jack question the influence Joseph has over him, Jack grows closer to Joseph. Without this emotional bond, Jack would have remained a static character as Jack’s relationship with Joseph initiates Jack’s coming-of-age journey. Joseph, already a father and an independent spirit, has achieved maturity in a variety of ways, and he inspires Jack to pursue the same kind of independence; only with this independence is Jack able to help Joseph.
Alongside Jack, the roles of the middle school teachers as mentors and supporters of Joseph grow as well. When the school suspends Joseph, the teachers come to the Hurd farm and tutor him. Their commitment to Joseph’s wellbeing parallels Jack’s attachment to Joseph. By demonstrating their compassion and determination to help Joseph, the teachers are simultaneously acting as mentors for Jack.
Joseph’s choice to continue reading the Octavian Nothing series is relevant to his own journey. The first novel concerns an enslaved boy raised in part by unrelated slave owners. The boy realizes that his classical education is part of a wider social experiment; Joseph’s similarly mistrusts the adults who proclaim to support him. Further, the novel includes a 13-year-old pregnant woman and a protagonist who runs away from his home.
Schmidt further explores the religious beliefs of his characters, building an important theme of the novel. Joseph becomes part of the Hurds’ Christmas rituals, and he accompanies the Hurds to a Christmas Eve church service. At the service, Reverend Ballou tells the Biblical story of Mary and Joseph, a story that has parallels to Joseph’s own experiences with an unplanned pregnancy. The lack of support Joseph receives from the people in his life is also relevant to the tale: “They were in trouble, and they knew it, and there was no one to help them” (110). The ending of the Biblical story deviates from his own experience, however, and the contrast is clear to Joseph, who asks Ballou where the angels were when he was struggling.
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By Gary D. Schmidt
