Discussion Topic
The cause and significance of Bobo the baboon's death in The Pigman
Summary:
The cause of Bobo the baboon's death in The Pigman is John and Lorraine's neglect. They fail to care for Mr. Pignati's pet after his hospitalization, leading to Bobo's demise. The significance lies in its representation of the consequences of their irresponsible actions and the loss of innocence, highlighting the impact of their behavior on those around them.
What caused Bobo the baboon's death in The Pigman?
Bobo the baboon apparently died of pneumonia.
After Mr. Pignati comes home from the hospital to find his house trashed because of a party that John and Lorraine had thrown there, the two teenagers feel terrible and want to make amends. They call Mr. Pignati and offer to come and clean up, and when he demurs, they invite him to the zoo, knowing that it is his favorite place to go. They hope that by taking him to see Bobo, his "best friend", they will be able to lift his spirits a little, and make up in a small way for their misdeeds.
When they get to the gorilla cages, Bobo is not there. An attendant tells Mr. Pignati and John and Lorraine that "Bobo died last week...did an autopsy on him, and it looked like pneumonia". Mr. Pignati, who is already very frail, stares in shock at the empty...
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cage for "what seem(s) like an eternity". The blood vessels on the side of his neck pulse as he raises his right hand to his face. His hands begin to shake, and he grabs hold of the railing, letting out "a tiny cry almost like a puppy that had been stepped on by mistake"; he then drops senseless to the floor. The shock of finding out that his beloved Bobo has died on top of all that has happened to him during the past weeks is too much for him. Mr. Pignati is dead (Chapter 14).
What was the importance of Bobo and his death in The Pigman?
Let us remember that to Mr. Pignati, Bobo was almost a replacement for his wife. In his state of solitude, his regular visits to Bobo and the delight that he takes in Bobo clearly illustrates how important this chimp actually is to this lonely old man. It is therefore no suprise that in Chapter 14 when Mr. Pignati discovers that Bobo has died, that he reacts in a way that demonstrates just how important Bobo was to him:
He went to grab hold of the railing, but let out a tiny cry almost like a puppy that had been stepped on by mistake. I can still remember the sound of it, and sometimes I wake up from a nightmare with it in my ears. It was like a high-pitched scream, but it came from deep inside of him, and before John or I knew what had happened, the Pigman dropped to the floor.
The news of Bobo's death is what results in the death of Mr. Pignati, as he realises just how alone he actually is in this world. For Mr. Pignati, who throughout the novel is shown again and again as being an intensely social individual for whom relationships are incredibly important, life just simply wasn't worth living without Bobo, and thus he dies. Let us not also forget the way in which Mr. Pignati had been effectively betrayed by John and Lorraine when they threw the party in his house. The death of Bobo thus also could be said to be symbolic of the death of the trust that Mr. Pignati had with John and Lorraine.