Previous
Chapter 38
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Knife of Never Letting Go, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Cost of Violence
Information vs. Knowledge
Bigotry and Misogyny
Humanity’s Connection to Nature
Summary
Analysis
In the morning, Viola spots a waterfall in the distance and figures it must be near Haven, since the bottom of a falls is a logical place to build a settlement. She and Todd grab their things and run to try to see Haven as soon as possible. They reach the edge of a cliff and see that the falls are huge, going right into a big settlement about three or four miles away that seems to be Haven.
The dramatic natural features in the lead-up to Haven suggest that the settlement itself will be impressive, while also suggesting that as close as Todd and Viola are to Haven, they will still have some final obstacles to face before arriving.
Themes
Todd uses Viola’s binoculars to look at the settlement. It’s too far away to see any people, but there are at least 50 or even 100 buildings, making it the biggest thing Todd has seen in his life. Viola, however, thought it would be bigger. They look back to try to find the Prentisstown army and think there must be at least three or four hundred of them. They’re too far away to catch Todd and Viola before they make it to Haven. But just as they’re getting ready to go, they see Aaron, coming down the river in a boat with his rifle, close enough to see without Viola’s binoculars.
Todd and Viola each prepare for the possibility that, for all their hope, Haven might not live up to their expectations after all. The number of buildings in Haven, compared with the number of men in the Prentisstown army suggests that Haven might not be big enough to hold them all back after all. The sudden reappearance of Aaron is yet another chapter-ending cliffhanger that promises to bring the novel toward a climax.
Themes
