GOING PLACES
by A.R Barton
A. R. Barton is a modern writer, who lives
AUTHOR’ in Zurich and writes in English. In the story
Going Places, Barton explores the theme
S of adolescent fantasising and hero
worship.
NOTE
This story’s central theme is hero worship
and teenage fantasies. Teenagers often
have irrational expectations, especially if
their families are struggling. This is due to
THEME the fact that a young person’s
socioeconomic background has a
significant impact on the job they choose
to pursue. If the fantasy is too far fetched
for a person, it might result in misery. We
see the main character as building castles
in the air which is a pointless activity.
The story revolves around a teenage girl
Sophie, her family and friends. She is a
daydreamer, who is always lost in her
dreams of becoming rich and sophisticated
Introduction though in reality she is a worker at biscuit
factory. The story suddenly twists up when
Sophie make a wild imagination of
meeting Danny Casey, a famous footballer.
She also makes a story in front of her
brother that Casey will come to meet her
on a fixed day as per a promise he made to
her.
The story begins with a scene of Sophie and
her friend Jansie talking to each other while
returning from school. Sophie is telling Jansie
about her plans to open a boutique after she
completes her schooling. She wants to
become a famous fashion designer like Mary
Quant. Jansie, who is more practical, is aware
that they are supposed to join the biscuit
factory after their studies. She reminds
Sophie that a boutique would require a lot of
money. She also explains to Sophie that the
latter’s plan to save money by working at a
shop is not feasible as it does not pay well,
and Sophie’s dad wants his daughter to work
Everyone in the family seems to know about
Sophie’s temperament. Back at home, her
younger brother, Derek mocks her unrealistic
dreams of earning big money. The story talks
about her looking at her mother’s crooked back,
indicating a glimpse of the compassion and pain
felt by Sophie at her family’s poverty-struck
conditions. Her brother Geoff is an apprentice
mechanic and travels to the far side of the city
every day for his work. He does not speak much,
and she feels jealous of his silence. She suspects
Geoff to be well-informed about places she does
not know about. Sophie reveals to Geoff that she
met Danny Casey in the arcade. Since Geoff does
Geoff passes on this news about Danny Casey
to his father at the dinner table. Their father
looks at Sophie disdainfully. He knows Sophie
is just up to one of her tricks of making up
stories. There is no way she would meet a
famous football player like Danny Casey. Her
father and Geoff start talking about football.
Sophie interjects the conversation, saying
Danny told her he would buy a shop. Her
father warns her that she might get into
serious trouble if she continues telling people
false stories.
Next, Sophie makes her brother promise not to
tell anyone that Danny Casey has asked to meet
her. Her brother finds it unbelievable. To make it
more realistic, Sophie narrates how she met
Danny and asked him for his autograph for Derek.
But neither of them had a pen and paper. So,
Danny asked Sophie if she would like to meet him
the following week for the autograph. Geoff does
not believe that the football player would show
up.
Sophie goes with her father and her
brothers to watch a football match that
Danny is playing. Danny’s team wins, and
Sophie feels proud. She meets Jansie the
following week and is surprised to hear
Jansie ask her about the meeting with
Danny. Geoff had told this news to Jansie’s
brother Frank. Sophie did not expect her
brother to spill out her secrets like this. As
she talks to Jansie about this secret
meeting, Sophie learns that Geoff had not
told Frank about the second meeting that
was going to take place between Sophie
Sophie goes to meet Danny at a spot by the
canal. She used to play there during her
childhood. She considers it a perfect place to
meet someone without drawing attention.
While she waits for Danny, she imagines how
the meeting will be. Danny would appear
from the shadows, and her reaction would be
that of excitement. After a while, she realises
that Danny will not come. Sophie goes into a
state of worry and despair – she would not be
able to prove to Geoff or the others that she
is telling the truth about Danny. As she walks
back home, Sophie imagines how Geoff would
be disappointed to know that Danny had not
come. She is glad to see her father’s cycle
On the way, she imagines Danny outside
the Royce’s. She visualises herself
talking to Danny and asking for his
autograph. Sophie imagines Danny to be
of the same height as hers. She gives
vivid descriptions of Danny’s appearance
according to her fantasies. Sophie
pictures him acting coy and awkward
with genuine innocence. She sees the
prodigy again the following Saturday –
displaying his excellent sportsmanship at
the game.
QUESTIONS
Question 1
What is the theme of the chapter
‘Going Places’?
ANSWER
The theme of Going Places centres
around the phenomenon of
daydreaming and pursuing
unrealistic dreams during
adolescence. Most of these
fantasies turn out to be
impractical and beyond belief,
which causes sadness and despair
Question 2
Why does Jansie discourage
Sophie from having dreams?
ANSWER
Jansie knew the social and economic
status of her and Sophie’s families. She
knew that Sophie would need a lot of
money to open a boutique of her own,
and Sophie’s plans to acquire money
were not realistically feasible either.
The consequences of dwelling on these
ideas and dreams could disappoint
Sophie later in life. That is why Jansie
Question 3
Did Sophie really meet Danny
Casey?
ANSWER
Sophie’s meeting with Danny Casey
was just a fantasy that had no truth to
it. Sophie had a vivid imagination that
allowed her to generate detailed
imagery and conversations about their
meetings. And when she finally went to
meet Danny, she realised that the
meeting was not happening, and she
