Becca Tedesco
INSC 571
Dr. Cindy Welch
Due: April 6, 2015
Fiction Analysis – Shiloh
Naylor, P. Reynolds. (1991). Shiloh. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.
Eleven-year-old Marty Preston has always been sensitive toward the suffering of animals,
but when a young Beagle that appears to have been abused wanders onto his family’s land,
Marty feels such a strong connection to the dog that he is prepared to do whatever it takes to save
it. Awarded the Newbery Medal in 1992, Shiloh, written by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor and
published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, tells the complex story of Marty’s journey to
save the dog that has captured his heart and his mind. In his determination to free the animal,
who he has named Shiloh, from a life of suffering, Marty abandons many of the community and
family values that have been instilled in him from his home in Friendly, West Virginia and
instead relies on deception and dishonesty to construct a web of lies that weighs heavily on his
conscience. Those lies continue to backfire and bring strife to his family, until Shiloh is
eventually hurt and Marty is forced to confront the dog’s owner and confess his deceit.
Eventually, Marty is able to strike a deal with Shiloh’s owner in order to work in exchange for
the dog, but even that bargain brings about an ethical dilemma for the boy, as he utilized
blackmail and possibly put the well-being of other animals in jeopardy in order to get his way.
It is this complexity of the narrative that makes Shiloh such a unique and outstanding
book for children. Although the age of the protagonist and the straightforward vocabulary
suggest that the book is best suited for readers ages eight to twelve, there is an overall theme of
morality that does not present a black and white view of right versus wrong. Instead, the book
contains intricate ethical dilemmas that are almost insoluble in nature, particularly for children
the ages of the intended audience. This is a unique approach that embraces ambiguity in
children’s literature rather than presenting didactic tales with clear suggestions as to the
“preferred” or “righteous” outcome. Naylor achieves success in this model by utilizing narrative
point of view, setting, and characterization throughout the story.
Shiloh is told through Marty’s first-person, present-tense narration, allowing the reader to
experience the story with him. No narrative framework is provided to structure the story; it
simply begins with “The day Shiloh come” (pg. 1) and escalates from there. This introduction is
important both because it symbolizes the day of change, when the Preston family’s lives would
be significantly altered, and demonstrates Marty’s single-minded perspective on the importance
that Shiloh now has in his life. Marty’s direct narration provides insight to his inner dilemmas
and struggles as he grapples with what is right: lying about the whereabouts of Shiloh in order to
protect him from the man who is abusing him or giving Shiloh back to the man who legally owns
him and not interfering in other people’s business. It is a question that is not answered
throughout the text but instead is consistently considered by a variety of characters, including
adults. When his father finally learns the truth about Shiloh, he tells Marty, “‘I want you to do
what’s right,’” to which Marty replies, ‘“What’s right?’ For once in my eleven years, I think I
have my dad stumped.” (pg. 94).
By allowing the reader to go through the story with Marty as it is happening, there is no
filter and no allowance for post-situational reflection. The story occurs in real-time, without any
narrative interruptions, allowing the reader to gain understanding of the difficulty of the
situation. Even as Marty rationalizes his decisions as being what is best for Shiloh, he still
struggles with the fact that he is hurting his family, such as when he takes food from the dinner
table to give to Shiloh later, even though he knows that his family’s economic situation means
that every crumb is valuable.
The book’s setting of Friendly, West Virginia, also has a strong set of community values
that deeply affect Marty’s conscience. Although the people are friendly and supportive of one
another, there is also an overwhelming belief that one should not interfere in his neighbor’s
business and that a man’s property and lifestyle is his own. Even though many people in the
town are not fond of Shiloh’s legal owner, Judd Travers, because of his rough nature and the way
he is rumored to treat his dogs, they prefer to mind their own business and let Judd be as he is.
Marty’s father is presented as a man who represents the core values of the town, as he
consistently tells Marty that the dog belongs to Judd and that it is his business alone how it is
treated. His father gives Marty yet another ethical predicament to consider by asking him if he
thinks that Judd is the only person in the town who mistreats animals and whether it had ever
occurred to Marty to save other ones. Marty’s response of “There’s got to be a first time” (pg.
95) demonstrates that he is willing to break away from the community values that are so
engrained in him in order to do what his heart believes is right. By their determination to adhere
to a rule rather than an individual outcome, Marty’s father and the town serve as foils to Marty,
who considers the consequences of his decisions to be the ultimate determination of what is
right.
Naylor also utilizes other forms of characterization to demonstrate the book’s complex
morality. Marty regularly refers to mothers as the person any boy should love most in the world,
and it is his mother’s strong belief in religious morality that he considers when trying to make
decisions about Shiloh. Upon finding Shiloh a second time and deciding to hide him from Judd,
Marty remembers that his mother once told him that Jesus looks with sad eyes upon anyone who
lies, so he prays for guidance. “‘Jesus,’ I whisper finally, ‘which you want me to do? Be one
hundred percent honest and carry that dog back to Judd so that one of your creatures can be
kicked and starved all over again, or keep him here and fatten him up to glorify your creation?’”
Despite her devotion to God and to the truth, even Marty’s mother seems to be emotionally
conflicted by Shiloh, and when she discovers that Marty has been hiding him, she agrees to keep
it a secret for one day, even though she has never lied to Marty’s father before. Her decision to
stray away from the truth emphasizes to the reader the difficulty of the situation at hand and that
even adult figures don’t have a simple answer to the problem.
Although Judd Travers is presented as the antagonist throughout the book, Naylor alludes
to subtle clues about his past that create sympathy for him and again demonstrate that situations
are not always black and white. Judd reveals early in the story that he doesn’t do anything to his
dogs that his father didn’t do to him, suggesting that there has been an ongoing cycle of abuse.
At the end of the story, Judd reveals that the only nice memory he has of his dad is going hunting
once or twice, Marty thinks, “It’s the first time in my life I ever felt anything like sorry for Judd
Travers” (pg. 142). By creating a complex, two-dimensional character, Naylor encourages the
reader to realize that, although Judd is mistreating his animals, there is sadness in his life that
deserves some compassion.
Judd’s revealing moments are juxtaposed by his consistently nasty actions, such as when
he shoots a doe out of season and attempts to claim that the deer was eating his garden. Marty
takes advantage of this situation to strike a deal with Judd, promising that he won’t report him if
Judd will give Shiloh to him. Marty again breaks from town convention by inserting himself into
Judd’s business and again ventures outside of his moral compass by enlisting blackmail as a
solution. Judd agrees to the deal as long as Marty works for twenty hours at his house to pay off
the amount that Shiloh cost, and Marty quickly agrees to it. The hours of backbreaking work that
Marty put in for Judd symbolize the cleansing of Marty’s soul as he has finally made an honest
agreement in order to gain possession of his beloved dog. Even when Judd suggests that he
won’t honor their agreement because there was no witness present when they signed the contract,
Marty continues to work because he is determined to be honest and hold up his end of the deal.
“I got no choice. All I can do is stick to my side of the deal and see what happens. All in the
world I can do” (pg. 139).
When Marty inquires with his parents about what a witness is, his mother’s religious
beliefs promptly reveals themselves when she replies, “‘Somebody who knows the Lord Jesus
and don’t mind tellin’ about it’” (pg. 138). When Judd ultimately honors his agreement with
Marty and gives Shiloh and a collar to him, he asks Marty what he’s going to do with his new
dog. When Marty replies, “‘Just play,’ I tell him, ‘Love him,’” he stands as witness for his sense
of morality – his love for Shiloh.