Previous
Chapter 44
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 Saturday, three builders—Mr. Batley and his sons—come to examine the garage. They tell Dad that he can either knock it down or watch it fall down. Dad gives the builders the go ahead to knock down the garage, so the three builders clear the junk out of the garage and lay it on the lawn. Soon, a dump truck comes to haul it all away.
The alternative that the builders give Dad for dealing with the garage is an urge to take an active role in improving one’s life. Keeping the garage would symbolize clinging to a past that the family should move on from. Demolishing the garage, on the other hand, would symbolize a collaboration with the natural transformation that is yearning to occur.
Themes
When the junk is gone, Michael stares into the empty garage and whispers goodbye to Skellig. The builders see the empty ale bottles and guess that a vagrant has been camping out in the garage. Michael and Dad watch from the kitchen as the builders take crowbars and swiftly collapse the garage. Dad looks out at the yard and makes plans for the “paradise” it will be. Mr. Batley and his sons stay for tea, and Mr. Batley says that nothing is better than some “knocky down.”
The demolition of the garage marks the conclusion of the family’s hardship. Initially, the garage had symbolized the decay and danger that was an obstacle to the transformation of the house. The clearing of the garage forces Michael to say goodbye to a huge part of his life, but this is necessary in order for him to truly believe in the “paradise” to come.
Themes
