The Children of Men: Chapter 27 Summary & Analysis

While driving through the countryside at night, the Fishes’ car comes upon a large fallen tree trunk. As they attempt to maneuver the car around it, Theo realizes with horror that it is a “deliberate obstruction,” and the Fishes have fallen into a trap. A group of feral Omegas with painted faces descends upon the group and begins to perform a ritual dance around the car, beating the sides and the roof of it with bats and truncheons.

Theo knows that these groups routinely kill one sacrificial victim, and that there is no chance of reasoning with them, even if they appeal to the Omega’s humanity by pointing out Julian’s pregnancy. Theo tells Rolf that when the Omegas inevitably crack up the car and force the group out, Rolf must take Julian and run for the trees. The rest of the group, Theo says, will join the Omegas’ dance as cover, and to stall them.

The Omegas break through the windshield, and Theo and the rest of the group join their dance. When one of the Omegas reaches for Julian, Rolf grabs her and they make a run for it. They must climb over a low wall, and one of the Omegas catches up to them as they do and grabs Julian’s clothes. Luke emerges from the crowd, screaming “Take me,” and the Omegas turn on him. The Omegas beat Luke to death while Theo and Miriam, too, run away. 

On the other side of the wall, the four remaining Fishes watch while the Omegas, done with Luke, light the Fishes’ car on fire—sending all of their gathered supplies up in smoke.

While the Omegas are distracted with the car, Theo and Rolf go for Luke’s body, which has been battered and torn beyond recognition. They bring it back to the forest, and Julian falls over Luke’s corpse. Rolf then asks Miriam whose child Julian is carrying, and when she does not answer, he becomes angry. Julian then tells him that the child is Luke’s. Rolf runs off in a fit of rage. Theo asks Miriam if she knew that Luke was the child’s true father, and she says that she did. Luke was never tested by the government; he had mild epilepsy as a child. Both he and Julian were “rejects” of the system, and their fertility was never discovered.

Theo and Miriam admire Julian’s unusual calmness, which Miriam attributes to her faith in God, and they wonder whether Rolf too will be able to calm himself. Miriam goes off to attend to Rolf, while Theo approaches Julian and asks her if she ever loved either Rolf or Luke. Julian tells him that she doesn’t believe she did.

Rolf returns to the group, and tells them that they must bury Luke at first light. The group hunkers down beneath another fallen tree, but Theo cannot sleep. He can smell the drying blood on Luke’s coat, which Julian now wears.