Part II, Big Sea, Jocko—Poem Summary and Analysis

When Langston is ready to go home to his mother's house, he goes to get Jocko from the pet shop. He is dismayed to find that the bill for boarding the monkey is almost all the money he has left. In addition, on the train ride home, he discovers that the train costs more than he had realized, and he does not even have enough money to get home. At the last minute, he sells a pair of pants to one of the porters, and hides the monkey in a bag. When he presents Jocko to his family, they are at first afraid of the monkey. Jocko provides entertainment to the whole town, but Langston's mother hates the monkey, and sells it soon after Langston leaves.

Langston goes off...