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Chapter 3
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Bone Sparrow, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Dehumanization, Invisibility, and Refugee Camps
Childhood
Family and Friendship
Storytelling, Escapism, and Hope
Summary
Analysis
When Subhi tells Eli what Queeny said about the sparrow, Eli scoffs: tents and houses aren’t the same thing. But since Subhi has only ever lived in a tent, he isn’t sure Eli is right. Subhi tells the Shakespeare duck too, and it asks Subhi to find him someone nice to take care of him when Subhi dies. Subhi says that nobody else will talk to a rubber duck, so the duck is coming with him if he dies. The duck is quiet after this. Subhi then tells Harvey, but he just wants to know what Subhi is doing to attract birds—they have a bad enough rat problem. Subhi doesn’t tell Maá, just in case she believes Queeny. It feels like now, the sparrows are always watching him.
Subhi is very clearly a child looking for support—and he’s not finding what he’s looking for. Keep in mind that the duck functions as Subhi’s imaginary friend; it allows Subhi to talk himself through difficult situations. Here, the duck seems pretty convinced that Subhi is going to die—suggesting that Subhi himself holds this view. In some cultures sparrows are symbols of death, but not in all. Indeed, Jimmie’s Bone Sparrow necklace is more protective than ominous, suggesting that Subhi’s friends in the detention center might very well be incorrect about the symbolism of sparrows.
Themes
Subhi and Eli are walking the fences when a sparrow hops right up to Subhi. Eli scoffs when Subhi points it out and says they have to get to work—Subhi has to earn his shoes. (Subhi has one of the 14 pairs of real shoes in the camp, though they’re still too big.) Eli and Subhi “run packages,” which means they run all over the camp trading supplies, and Subhi needs real shoes to do it. Eli keeps a list in his head of who’s trading shirts for flip-flops, or a mosquito stick for toothpaste, so nobody can find a written list and get them in trouble. Eli gives Subhi toothpaste, extra underwear, and pads for Maá and Queeny as compensation. Eli and Subhi know all the weak spots in the fences and the places the cameras can’t see. From Family Compound, they can pass supplies to every compound in the place except for Beta. Beta is where the Jackets put people they think are “trouble,” and the Jackets there have dogs. Those people live alone in containers and only get two walks outside per day.
Again, Subhi shares that there are only 14 pairs of real shoes in the camp, implying that this is a normal situation—but it isn’t. His sense that it’s normal reflects how growing up in the camp has warped his understanding of how the world works. He doesn’t grasp that other people experience a far higher quality of life than he and the other refugees experience. Similarly, while Subhi clearly understands the need for the list to stay in Eli’s head, the very fact that Eli has this list and facilitates these trades for basic supplies shows how dire life is in the camp, and how inadequately the camp provides for refugees. The details about Beta Complex read as particularly sinister, as it’s never shared what makes a person “trouble.” This suggests that anyone could end up there.
Themes
Eli moves the stash almost weekly to avoid trouble with the Jackets. This week, it’s under the trash behind the kitchens. The rats glare at Eli and Subhi when they come to gather items. Eli hands Subhi a shirt, which has something hard and mysterious wrapped in it. It’s for Pietre in Alpha. The toothpaste from Pietre will then go to someone in Family Two. Eli says that Subhi will bring back a mosquito stick from Family Two—and Subhi, his “little bruda,” should watch his back. Eli used to have an actual little brother, and he keeps his little brother’s glove in his pocket for luck.
Subhi interprets the rats as glaring at him because he sees them as his friends—and it’s rude, Subhi believes, to interrupt a friend’s lunch. Eli, however, doesn’t seem to share this qualm, highlighting the maturity difference between the two boys: Eli is more of an adult, while Subhi is inarguably a child.
Themes
Subhi pokes at whatever’s wrapped in the shirt; Eli never opens packages, so it’s anyone’s guess what it is. He approaches the fence with Alpha and whistles. Pietre heads Subhi’s direction when suddenly, he stops and shakes his head. The scared look on Pietre’s face says there’s a Jacket behind Subhi. Slowly, Subhi turns and can tell immediately that it’s Beaver. Queeny was right, and the sparrow was a sign of death. Subhi is going to die.
Readers don’t yet know who Beaver is or what he’s all about, but it’s clear that Subhi is terrified of him. This reminds readers that not all Jackets are as kind and caring as Harvey.
Themes
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