Part 2: Chapter 8 Summary

In this chapter, we learn that before Billy and Inez had gone to Dwight's home, they had stopped at the prison. Paul is clearly deranged, and Inez is trying to detach herself from the whole thing. She thinks that her father needs to be put away, but Billy is directing her response to meet the requirements of her public relations position as the congressman's wife; she is told to say that he needs treatment.

Part 2: Chapter 8 Analysis

Billy never quits. He is wholly, solely, and completely a public-relations animal, who lives, breathes, and spews image creation. Every successful politician has one, and they are portrayed as the most evil and despicable of all the characters in this story. On the other hand, Didion tells us at the end of the story that Billy Dillon was in love with Inez and admired...