Previous
Part 1, Chapter 3
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Memory and Meaning
Love and Vulnerability
Freedom
Art, Creativity, and Expression
Wonder and Knowledge
Summary
Analysis
Villon-sur-Sarthe, France. Fall 1703. Villon is a Catholic community. There’s a church in the center of the town, and Adeline’s parents go there twice a week to pray to God. Adeline, now 12 years old, goes too, but she doesn’t really believe in God. Estele, an eccentric old village woman, thinks of this God as “the new God,” and she thinks He “belongs to the cities and kings,” and “has no time for peasants[.]” Adeline’s father thinks Estele is crazy, and Adeline’s mother thinks Estele will go to Hell. When Adeline told Estele this, Estele just laughed. She said there’s no such thing as Heaven and Hell—Heaven, according to Estele, is “a nice spot in the shade, a broad tree over my bones.”
Estele doesn’t conform to the social and spiritual beliefs common among the other villagers—this is why Adeline’s father thinks Estele is “crazy” and Adeline’s mother thinks she’s destined for Hell. Estele (and her religion) seems to prefer the natural world to the social norms of Villon—that she considers the patch of shade beneath a tree “Heaven” confirms this. Also note that trees are an important symbol in the book. This section shows how Addie comes to associate trees with Estele and the freedom she has since she’s not bound to the tenets of Christianity. In addition, Estele seems skeptical of society and institutional power in general, a view she makes clear when she says that God “belongs to the cities and the kings.” She’s suggesting that the institution of the Christian church is corrupt, serving the interests of the rich as opposed to spreading Christian ideals.
Themes
Adeline wonders which god to pray to to convince her father to let her accompany him to Le Mans. It’s the first time in six years that she hasn’t been allowed to come with him, as Adeline’s mother has decided it’s no longer appropriate for her to go to the market. Adeline’s mother wishes Adeline would be more like Isabelle Therault, Addie’s friend in the village. Isabelle keeps her eyes focused down on her knitting instead of up at the clouds, and she’s never curious to know what’s over the hills. Adeline doesn’t want to be like Isabelle, though; she wants to see the world.
As Addie grows older, her disinterest in practical skills like knitting and her preference for dreaming and adventure become more of an issue. Her mother likely wants her to settle down and get serious about the tasks their society expects women to do, but Addie shows no sign of wanting to live that kind of life, which she considers dull and restrictive. Finally, Addie’s thought about which god to pray to seems important—it may be related to the comments Addie makes in the earlier chapter, set in 2014, about “sign[ing] away her soul.” Could she have prayed to some god for an adventure and gotten her wish?
Themes
After Adeline’s father leaves, Adeline looks for Estele. Estele worships “the old gods.” Adeline was five or so the first time she saw the old woman drop her engraved stone cup into the river. When Adeline asked Estele what she was doing, Estele told Adeline that Marie’s pregnancy wasn’t going well, so she was praying to the river gods to help. Estele explained that she dropped her stone cup into the river because the gods are greedy. Estele calls Adeline Addie, a nickname Adeline’s mother hates—she thinks it sounds boyish.
This section further illustrates how different Estele is from the other people in Adeline’s life. She worships “the old gods” instead of the Christian God. In addition, that she gives Adeline her “boyish” nickname, Addie, suggests that she doesn’t conform to the gender roles that the other villagers uphold. This is probably what draws Addie to Estele: Estele shows Addie that a different, more freeing way of life is possible. She also sees Addie for who she is, Addie, not the more feminine “Adeline” her mother wants her to be.
Themes
Now, Adeline finds Estele minding one of the blackberry bushes in her garden. Adeline asks Estele to teach her to talk to the gods. Estele sighs. Warily, Estele explains that there are rules for talking to the gods. You must give them a gift—something that’s special to you, and it’s important to “be careful what you wish for.” Estele tells Adeline that the gods “are neither kind nor merciful,” and they will try to trick you. If you must call them, you have to be very careful, and you must “be willing to pay the price.” And most importantly, she tells Adeline, is that no matter how desperately you need their help, you must “never pray to the gods that answer after dark.”
Estele’s stern warnings to “be careful what you wish for,” that the old gods “are neither kind nor merciful,” and that Adeline should “be willing to pay the price” suggest that the old gods are powerful and have the potential to harm mortals like Adeline. This section seems to foreshadow whatever mistake Adeline makes later that will lead her to “sign away her soul,” as she mentioned doing in a previous chapter. It seems increasingly clear that sometime after Adeline’s 23rd birthday, she made a deal with the gods, didn’t heed Estele’s warning to be careful, and things went horribly awry after that. Maybe the gods had something to do with nobody remembering Addie.
Themes
Get the entire The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue LitChart as a printable PDF.
Adeline’s father returns two days later; he has a new pad of parchment and a bundle of lead pencils for Adeline. Adeline takes the best pencil to the garden and sinks it into the ground, praying that she will be with her father the next time he leaves the village. If the gods hear her, they don’t answer.
That Adeline offers the gods her best pencil, something that has a high value to her, shows how serious she is about wanting to leave Villon. This might lead the reader to wonder where Addie draws the line—how much is she willing to give up to have the freedom and adventure she desires?
Themes
