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Chapter 40
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
Todd feels ready as Aaron finally appears in the cavern. Todd tells him he can put his rifle down, since he knows what Aaron really wants. Todd realized that the real sacrifice isn’t him or Viola but Aaron himself. The true secret of Prentisstown is that boys only become men by each killing another man, often ones who attempted and failed to escape. As the last boy in town, Todd was supposed to be special.
Todd’s long journey, his upbringing with Ben and Cillian, and his new friendship with Viola have all helped him to become a more mature person. With his new experience, he can better see the ways that Aaron is trying to manipulate him, culminating in this moment where Todd confronts Aaron directly.
Themes
Aaron prays, saying he doesn’t just want Todd to kill him but to murder him. He needs Todd in the army because of his belief that “if one of us falls, we all fall.” Aaron isn’t afraid of death because he believes it’s his fate to become a saint. Todd reads Aaron’s Noise and sees that Aaron’s original plan was to make Todd a killer by murdering Ben and hoping Todd would seek revenge. But now Aaron feels that Viola is a sign from heaven and that her true purpose is to play a role in turning Todd into a killer.
Aaron is so committed to his beliefs that he is even willing to die for them—in fact, he wants to die for them. His character reveals how, similar to Noise, zealous devotion to an ideology can also twist a person’s perspective and cause them to lose track of what’s real and what’s false.
Themes
Aaron tries to goad Todd into killing him to become a man, but Todd says he’s already a man. Todd tells Viola to run as he gets into a fistfight with Aaron. But instead, Viola tries to help, throwing a big stone at Aaron. It hits him, but he manages to recover and grab Viola. Todd has his knife but fights without it until eventually Aaron hits him and makes him drop the knife.
Todd demonstrates here that he has become more self-assured after his journey. It was his doubts about his manhood that led him into trouble earlier, such as when he stabbed the Spackle because he thought refusing to use his knife would make him a coward. Now, however, Todd is harder for Aaron to manipulate because Todd is more confident in himself and his decisions.
Themes
Aaron says that if Todd won’t complete the sacrifice, Aaron will just have to kill Viola and then Todd himself. Viola comes up behind Aaron and hits him again with a big rock, but he doesn’t fall, causing Todd to marvel that Aaron really does seem to be a monster. Aaron knocks Viola back so that she hits her head hard on a rock. Her whole body goes limp, and Aaron laughs.
Aaron’s seeming indestructibility demonstrates just how durable concepts like hatred and violence can be. Aaron’s laughter at Viola’s injury shows how he is totally without empathy, unlike Todd, who has spent the course of his journey finally learning to understand Viola.
Themes
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Todd’s Noise begins to go red. He feels that he can hear his knife calling out to him from the ground, begging him to kill Aaron. Todd says he’s sorry, not knowing who he’s apologizing to, then he knocks Aaron down and starts punching him in the face until he’s bloody. Todd thinks he’s going to use the knife. He can feel it calling to him. But before he can reach it, Viola picks it up.
In spite of everything he’s learned and experienced, Todd seems to be in danger of giving Aaron exactly what he wants—a martyr’s death. This scene illustrates the visceral appeal of violence and revenge, showing how even someone who has matured like Todd may nevertheless get tempted by violence in the moment.
Themes
Todd can sense Aaron’s Noise saying, “Not you.” Viola drives the knife into Aaron’s neck so hard that it goes through to the other side and there’s a crunch. Aaron stumbles and tries to say something, but he can’t. His Noise stops and he falls over the edge at the end of the church into the chasm, taking the knife with him.
The arrogant, chauvinistic Aaron never considered the possibility that Viola might fight back. Aaron does not succeed in becoming a martyr after all because Viola kills him not out of anger or revenge but as a selfless act to protect Todd from becoming what Aaron wants him to become.
Themes
