The Children of Men: Chapter 12 Summary & Analysis

Xan’s office is not at Ten Downing Street, historically the seat of British government. Instead, he lives and works in what used to be the Foreign and Commonwealth building nearby. 

A Grenadier shows Theo into Xan’s office, where the full Council is assembled. They sit together on one side of the table, opposing Theo, who realizes that the arrangement is a “ploy intended to disconcert him.”

Xan has his hands folded on the table. He wears the Coronation Ring, the ornate and heavy wedding ring of England, on his left hand. Xan notices Theo eyeing the ring, and insists that it was Harriet’s idea he wear it. “The people,” he says, “need their baubles.” Theo tells Xan that there was once a time when Xan “wouldn’t have felt the need to wear it.”

Theo sits in the chair designated for him and tells the group that he asked for a “personal” meeting with Xan alone. Xan retorts that since it’s been three years since he and Theo last met, or even spoke, he thought Theo “might like to meet [with] old friends.” Felicia remarks that Theo is not a friend, but an acquaintance, and that she never understood why Theo spent time on the Council in the first place. Xan once again insists that all gathered in the room are “friends,” but Theo hears a threat in his words.

Theo launches into a report on the botched Quietus he witnessed, asking if a “murderous parade [is] what the Council means by security, comfort, [and] pleasure.” Felicia is aware that that particular Quietus was “mismanaged” and promises “appropriate action will be taken against those responsible.” Harriet chimes in, claiming that “people need their rites of passage,” and want to “feel the touch of a human hand” at the ends of their lives. Harriet and Felicia both insist that there are many “safeguards” in place that protect the safety and integrity of those who choose to participate in the Quietus.

Xan asks Theo if he is finished. Theo presses on, asking about the Isle of Man Penal Colony, and whether Xan and the Council are aware of the dire conditions there. Felicia insists that Theo had “no objection” to the establishment of the Colony back when he sat on the Council. Theo replies that he assumed the conditions on the island would be better than what they are. Xan says that “the encouragement of criminals is an indulgence [society can no longer] afford,” and asks Theo if he has any more concerns to bring forth.

Theo mentions the Sojourners, questioning why they are treated as slaves and why they are sent back to their countries of origin. Martin speaks up, remarking that immigration is just the arrival of “invading hordes” which damage society. Theo notes that “whoever speaks, [their] voice is the voice of Xan. Xan cuts in to say that “generosity is a virtue for individuals, not governments.”

Carl Inglebach finally speaks; he launches into a tirade about the imbalance between humanity’s faith in the past, present, and future. He tells Theo that as a historian, he should know that man is “diminished” without both knowledge of his past and hope for a future, and in this new world humanity lacks both. Carl feels that Britain has been “spared” the catastrophic return to “starvation, civil war, and human sacrifice” that has plagued many other countries since Year Omega. Carl insists that the Sojourners, the Quietus, and the Man Penal Colony are societal goods which have helped people to cope since the world changed.

Theo concedes that the Council has made many achievements but wonders aloud why some “reforms” can’t be made—the Council could make positive change happen so easily. Xan tells Theo that he is asking too much, and that Theo desires the “ends” that the council has achieved but is refusing to acknowledge the necessary “means” to achieve those ends. Xan stands up and exits the room, and the rest of the Council follows behind him. A Grenadier appears at Theo’s side to show him out, and Theo leaves.