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Part 2, Chapter 8: Opening the Door
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Invention of Hugo Cabret, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Magic, Cinema, and Imagination
Friendship, Honesty, and Vulnerability
Meaning and Purpose
Hardship and Maturity
Summary
Analysis
Hugo runs to the train station as quickly as possible. Before returning to his room, he steals a bottle of milk from the café. While at the café, he hears two people talking about how the police found Claude’s body in the river. They wonder if the station is haunted because the clocks keep running even though Claude is dead. The story shocks Hugo, and he accidentally drops the bottle of milk he is holding.
The news of Claude’s death makes Hugo realize that his current situation is about to come crashing down. Even if he continues to maintain the clocks, someone will come looking for him. The new shocks Hugo, but not because the death upsets him. Although he does not hate Claude, he does not miss him either.
Themes
The café owner sees the spilled milk and recognizes Hugo as the person who has been stealing from her. Hugo runs away, followed closely by the café owner and the Station Inspector. Hugo makes it back to his room, where he grabs the automaton and tries to carry it back to Georges. However, before he can get far, the Station Inspector grabs him by his injured hand, causing him to drop the automaton. Hugo convinces the Station Inspector to let go of the hand because of the pain, at which point he runs away again.
Hugo’s problems grow by the minute. Although he manages to escape for moments at a time, his entire world is closing in on him, and soon, even a boy as clever as Hugo will not be able to avoid some sort of reckoning. Nonetheless, Hugo wants to honor his relationship with Georges by returning the automaton. The automaton is what started this journey in the first place, and Hugo is determined to give it to its rightful owner.
Themes
Hugo runs through the labyrinthine tunnels of the train station, followed closely by the Station Inspector. Hugo runs as fast as he can, but no matter what he does, the Station Inspector is not far behind. Eventually, Hugo manages to get out of the Station Inspector’s line of sight and hide behind a wall. Although he gets a chance to catch his breath, it is not long before the Station Inspector finds him, and the chase is on again. The chase ends when Hugo exits a vent and runs into a random person at the station. The collision gives the Station Inspector time to grab Hugo and hold on to him for good. He tells Hugo that he plans to put him in jail.
This is the first time in the story where the Station Inspector actually makes his presence known. Although he is a villain, of sorts, he is only carrying out his job. So far, he has not given any indication that he is the boogeyman Hugo thinks he is. Nonetheless, Hugo’s long run of living in the train station has finally come to an end, and he is going to need to explain himself.
Themes
