Previous
Chapter 1
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Skellig, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Weakness, Strength, and Hardship
Curiosity, Nature, and Transformation
Love, Empathy, and Caregiving
Imagination, Magic, and Faith
Summary
Analysis
On Sunday morning, Michael shines a flashlight through the planks nailed across the garage’s door. The roof sags over the crumbling brick walls. The garage stinks of dust and rot, and it’s piled full of junk. Cobwebs cover everything. Michael hears a scratching in the corner. He is about to go in and see what it is when Mum comes to the back door. She shouts at Michael, reminding him that he’s not allowed to go in the garage until it’s fixed; she says they have enough to worry about without him getting crushed by a collapsing garage. Michael promises and goes to the garden. Mum goes back to the baby.
The dilapidated garage symbolizes Michael’s ongoing struggles. Like the garage, everything in Michael’s life is collapsing: his baby sister is fatally ill, and he has been uprooted from his home. Michael’s curious exploration of the garage suggests that he is looking for answers to explain the pattern of decay that is defining his life. The creature that he discovers seems to embody the potential answers to his questions.
Themes
