Chapter XVII Departures Summary and Analysis

Kesey prepares the Pranksters for a relocation to Mexico by posting messages on a bulletin board. Mountain Girl, now pregnant, decides to return to her home town of Poughkeepsie, New York. Sandy, who has rejoined the Pranksters after his psychotic episode on DMT and subsequent treatment, has again had a problem with the drug and reenters treatment.

This is a short chapter done entirely in free verse poetry. It stands apart from the rest of the book as a type of Greek chorus, an interlude and foreshadowing of an important turn in the story. The reader might imagine the poetry set to music and chanted in the rapping manner of the Pranksters with their group consciousness going strong under the influences of LSD, marijuana and speed.

The poetry consists of three parts: PREPARE FOR MEXICO, MOUNTAIN GIRL...