On the Sidewalk Bleeding

On the Sidewalk Bleeding is a short story by American author Ed McBain, also known as Evan Hunter. The story was first published in Manhunt magazine in 1956.[1] Its protagonist, a sixteen-year-old boy named Andy, bleeds to death on the sidewalk after being stabbed below the ribs by a member of a rival gang. The story is commonly used as teaching material in elementary schools, high schools and colleges.[2][3][4][5] According to Evan Hunter, this was one of his most anthologized stories, together with First Offence and The Last Spin.[6]

"On The Sidewalk Bleeding"
AuthorEvan Hunter
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre(s)Tragedy, short story
Published inManhunt magazine (1st release)
Publication typePeriodical
Media typePrint (Magazine)
Publication date1956

Summary

The short story takes place during the last minutes of the 16-year- Andy's life. Andy is a member of a gang called "The Royals", as shown by a purple jacket he's wearing. He left Laura at a dance to buy a pack of cigarettes and is stabbed by a member of a rival gang, The Guardians, he is slow to realize the severity of his wound partly due to ignorance and other to shock. Andy soon notices that he is slowly dying. Due to the rapid loss of blood, he is too weak to clearly speak. A drunk man comes down the alley and assumes Andy is also drunk and staggers off, telling him he's lucky he won't call the police. A young boy named Freddie and girl named Angela fear to help him because he is a Royal and do not want to become involved in gang wars. An elderly lady digs through trash cans nearby but does not hear him because of her being a little deaf and the sound of rain splattering the trash cans. In his final moments, Andy realizes the Royals jacket cost him his life. With the last of his strength, he shrugs off the jacket. A few minutes after midnight, Laura — Andy’s partner leaves the dance to find him. She tells the cop that he has died. The cop simply looks at the jacket that rested a foot away from Andy's body and says, "A Royal huh?". Laura answers, "His name was Andy". The cop ignores her and says, "A Royal," and continues to write on his clack pad.

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References
  1. E. E. MacDonald; Ed McBain and Evan Hunter (2012) A Literary Companion. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers: Jefferson, North Carolina.
  2. Jay Cline, Ken Williams (1969) Voices in literature, language, and composition, Book 3, Ginn and Company. p. 103
  3. Rose Wassman, Lee Ann Rinsky (1999) Effective reading in a changing world, Longman. ISBN 978-0130115799, p. 99
  4. Brenda D. Smith (2005) Bridging the Gap, Longman; 8 edition. ISBN 978-0321416759 p. 191
  5. Barbara Ruth Johnson (January 1975). "Resources for the Teaching of English: 1975". The English Journal. 64 (1): 84–85.
  6. Ed McBain (2006) Learning to Kill, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 978-0151012220, p. 452
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