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Chapter Fifty-Five
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Children of Blood and Bone, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Prejudice and Inequality
Duty to Family vs. Self
Faith and Tradition
Cycles of Violence
Summary
Analysis
Zélie is devastated, but when she returns to the camp that evening, Amari brightly dresses her up for the celebration. With her sadness has returned a deep apprehension about sharing the scroll’s magic. She pictures Tzain’s fear when she struck him, and her own when Kwame was ignited.
Seeing the harm that magic can cause has made Zélie question whether reintroducing it will truly bring peace. She worries that bringing back magic might simply lead to more fighting, rather than its end.
Themes
Amari also gives Zélie a word of caution. She says she can see that Inan is infatuated with her, but she warns that his loyalty to their father is stronger. Despite her instincts, Zélie maintains that she trusts Inan now, and thinks that he has a good heart. Amari is overjoyed to think her brother is finally turning away from family, towards what is right.
Much like Tzain, Amari worries that the loyalty Inan has for their father will overrule any newer pull he might feel towards acting against Saran. However, Zélie convinces her that Inan is actually turning towards what is right instead of blindly following his father.
Themes
Amari asks again why Zélie doesn’t want to share the scroll. All Zélie can picture is destruction at the maji’s hands. She says they need to establish control first, or people will get hurt.
Zélie worries that unchecked magic will cause yet another power imbalance, which will simply bring more violence and pain. She wonders if bringing back magic is truly the way to end the cycle of violence in the kingdom.
Themes
Amari pulls Zélie outside, where the festival is in full swing. It takes Zélie’s breath away. Seeing dances and hearing songs to celebrate the gods, Zélie feels like she’s watching a community who can breathe again for the first time. It reminds her of her mother. Amari tells her that she is a part of this joy, and she shouldn’t let anyone take this magic away.
Divîners are united by more than just their abilities. They are also a strong community united by faith and traditions, like the festival. Zélie sees that the strength of that community outweighs the potential risk of violence. Through magic and tradition, divîners are connected to their gods, to one another, and to their ancestors, just as Zélie feels more connected to her mother.
Themes
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