Loyalty for loyalty's sake
Chino is known for being an active and ethical person, although the novel explores ways that he is more insidious and clever than he seems on the surface, but compare his generally virtuous way of life to that of his best friend. What is Chino's motivation to fiercely bind his fate to Sapo's, knowing Sapo has a chaotic element to him? The answer is that Chino is basically taking it as a dare to be loyal to his friend until death, and when he rats on local criminals, he leaves Sapo's name out of it.
Alcohol as a symbol
Alcohol is a poignant symbol for suffering in this book because the kids are driven to excess by the chronic pain of their frustrated lives. They don't have a narrative to guide them, so they live instinctually from their nature, operating at times like petty lords in the Wild West or something. The underground element basically has alcohol as its passage-way; at dives and liquor stores, people can find the kind of people they might want to associate with to obtain other vices. The main characters of this novel are never quite lucid, because they are always wrecked by drunkenness or hangovers. To them, it seems normal.
The wife allegory
The experienced reader will instantly see that Chino is falling for tricks in his relationship to his wife. As he blooms into his adult self, he focuses more on how he is misunderstood, instead of applying those same feelings of misunderstanding and nuance to his wife to better empathize with her. Instead of making her a true partner in his life, he departs from her for the substance of his daily adventures and finds other partners in the neighborhood. They feel very noble for some reason for being "active," but the criminal element is in fact a betrayal to Chino's role as a father. The problems that he is attempting to solve would have been better solved by prioritizing his family highly and accepting responsibility to build a life for them.
Opporunity
The symbolism of opportunity is extremely valuable in understanding this novel, because the protagonist clearly misunderstands the true risk and reward principle of opportunity. The truth of the matter is that this novel finds Chino in a season of existential confusion and malaise, and then introduces him to a chaotic and interesting group of friends that are less boring than his home life getting to know his wife. This can be seen moralistically, but that would be a short-sighted way of treating Chino's journey. Instead, it is better to see this addiction to new adventures as a sign of chronic social disenfranchisement. What else is there to do? What is his path forward in life? Why not go be part of what is happening on the streets with all your friends? The book accentuates the need for opportunity.
