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Todd’s changing relationship to the knife that Ben gives him represents Todd’s coming-of-age journey, specifically how he comes to think about the relationship between maturity and violence. For much of the beginning of the novel, Todd feels like a coward because he isn’t able to bring himself to kill with his knife—not even after the preacher Aaron seemingly attempts to kill Todd, and Todd has the chance to stab him. Todd associates the ability to kill with the ability to be an adult and make difficult choices. Although Todd is still naïve at this point, his views on violence have some truth to them, as adult characters like Cillian and Hildy each attempt to use violence to protect the people they love from even greater forces of violence.
Still, Todd’s relationship with his knife changes when he finally works up the nerve to use it and ends up killing a Spackle. Todd realizes shortly afterward that the Spackle was likely innocent, and he soon learns, with help from Viola, that everything Mayor Prentiss taught him about the dangers of the Spackle was a lie. Todd learns that perhaps the even greater test of his manhood is learning when not to use the knife, in order to resist becoming the type of violent man that Aaron and Mayor Prentiss want him to become.
Later, when Aaron stabs Todd with his own knife, Todd begins to hallucinate (due to the Spackle blood on the knife), illustrating how violence can distort the way a person views the world. Ultimately, Viola saves Todd from becoming a killer by using Todd’s knife against Aaron so that Todd doesn’t have to. As the first in a series, the novel deliberately leaves open the question of what type of adult Todd might grow into if he ever killed another human. But Todd’s growing understanding that the knife is a huge responsibility, and that violence has major and unforeseen consequences, points to his growing maturity.
Knife Quotes in The Knife of Never Letting Go
The The Knife of Never Letting Go quotes below all refer to the symbol of Knife. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 5
Quotes
Ben reaches behind his back and unclasps something. He wriggles it for a second or two before it comes unlatched completely. He hands it to me. It’s his hunting knife, the big ratchety one with the bone handle and the serrated edge that cuts practically everything in the world, the knife I was hoping to get for the birthday when I became a man. It’s still in its belt, so I can wear it myself.
“Take it,” he says. “Take it with you to the swamp. You may need it.”
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Chapter 6
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It’s a girl.
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Chapter 8
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Aaron turns, not even fast like, just turns like someone’s called his name. He sees me standing there, knife in the air, not moving like the goddam coward idiot I am, and he smiles and boy I just can’t say how awful a smile looks on that torn-up face.
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Chapter 18
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A shadow steps into the far doorway.
Matthew Lyle.
And his Noise is saying, Ye ain’t going nowhere, boy.
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Chapter 24
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“How can you keep saying that?” she asks, her voice finally snappy. “How can you keep saying that he’s a man and you’re not? Just because of some stupid birthday? If you were where I came from you’d already be fourteen and a month!”
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Chapter 25
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And (no no no no no) I see the fear that was coming from his Noise–
(No no no, please no.)
And there’s nothing left for me to throw up but I heave anyway–
And I’m a killer–
I’m a killer–
I’m a killer–
(Oh, please no) I’m a killer.”
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Chapter 26
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There’s a knife-shaped hole all the way thru and out the other side. The knife is so sharp and Aaron must be so strong that it’s hardly ruined the book at all. The pages have a slit running thru them all the way thru the book, my blood and Spackle blood staining the edges just a little, but it’s still readable.
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Chapter 29
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And I raise the knife higher–
And I aim it at his heart–
And he’s still smiling–
And I bring the knife down–
And stab it right into Viola’s chest.
“No!” I say, in the second that it’s too late.
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Chapter 30
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“It won’t work,” says the boy, still outta sight.
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Chapter 31
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And Aaron wrenches his arms and there’s a CRACK and a scream and a cut-off yelp that tears my heart in two forever and forever.
And the pain is too much it’s too much it’s too much and my hands are on my head and I’m rearing back and my mouth is open in a never-ending wordless wail of all the blackness that’s inside me.
And I fall back into it.
And I know nothing more as the river takes us away and away and away.
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Chapter 41
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It’s saying Not you–
And Viola’s raising her arm–
Raising the knife–
And bringing it down–
And down–
And down–
And plunging it straight into the side of Aaron’s neck–
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Get the entire The Knife of Never Letting Go LitChart as a printable PDF.
Knife Symbol Timeline in The Knife of Never Letting Go
The timeline below shows where the symbol Knife appears in The Knife of Never Letting Go. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
...to the swamp. At last, Todd promises to go. Ben hands Todd a big hunting knife, saying he might need it. There’s another bang from the farm. Todd says he doesn’t...
(full context)
Chapter 6
...distance, Todd hears gunshots. As Todd goes along the river, he holds on to his knife in case of crocodiles. All of a sudden, Todd can hear the Noise of hungry...
(full context)
A crocodile leaps for Manchee, who barely avoids it. Without thinking, Todd uses his knife and somehow manages to kill the croc. Just as Todd is recovering, Aaron surprises him...
(full context)
...Manchee run away. Just then, Todd hears the quiet again. He holds on to his knife, believing he’s going to have to kill a Spackle. All of a sudden, they stop...
(full context)
Chapter 7
Todd doesn’t let go of the knife. He asks the girl who she is. Todd knows what girls are because he’s heard...
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...tells the girl he isn’t going to hurt her, but she keeps looking at his knife. He lowers it but doesn’t let go as he searches his pack for a medipak...
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Chapter 8
...the girl so he can escape. But then he hears her scream and goes running, knife in hand. As he gets closer, he can tell from Aaron’s Noise that he intends...
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...of Todd’s death, but God doesn’t care about cowards anyway. Todd hesitates to use his knife, and so Aaron hits Todd’s hand, knocking the knife away. He hits Todd again, knocking...
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When Todd recovers, he sees that the girl has his knife, although Aaron has tied her hands. Todd cuts her free. She seems to know that...
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Chapter 12
...and tells her that they have to leave immediately. They run, and Todd holds his knife, promising himself that if Aaron gets close again, Todd will kill him for real this...
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...cross the bridge. Todd gets the idea of trying to cut the bridge with his knife, but he realizes too late that the ropes have a tough resin on them that...
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Chapter 17
Todd reaches for his knife, but Hildy warns him not to use it. Todd, however, is worried because he can...
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...Matthew points with his machete toward Viola to ask who she is, Todd draws his knife. Hildy intervenes again, telling Matthew that Todd isn’t the enemy and telling Todd that Prentisstown...
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Chapter 19
...town, but Matthew won’t allow it. To stop Matthew, Todd cuts some ropes with his knife and some debris falls on Matthew. Todd goes down and kicks his machete away, then...
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Chapter 23
...while Mr. Prentiss Jr. catches up to him. Todd is still holding on to his knife, but Mr. Prentiss Jr. tells him to drop it and he reluctantly does.
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...tying Todd up, doing his legs, but Todd manages to headbutt him. Todd gets his knife back and puts it against Mr. Prentiss Jr’s throat, asking what Mayor Prentiss wants with...
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Chapter 25
Todd and the Spackle both leap, with Todd brandishing his knife. Todd wants to prove that he can kill. Viola tries to stop Todd, saying the...
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...from the Spackle’s Noise. He realizes that he’s a killer. He throws down his bloody knife, and they decide that they have to leave before any more Spackles show up.
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...knocks Todd down onto his stomach. The last thing Todd sees is Aaron raising the knife over his head and bringing it down.
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Chapter 26
...one around but Manchee. He remembers being stabbed by Aaron and tries to find the knife, only to realize that when Aaron tried to stab Todd in the back, it went...
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...to his head where Aaron hit him. He is relieved to see that because his knife is so sharp, it tore right through his Ma’s journal, meaning the damage isn’t too...
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Chapter 27
...across a turtle sunning itself. He wants to kill it and eat it with his knife, but he keeps thinking of the Spackle and can’t do it. Todd keeps walking on,...
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Chapter 29
...he has to do is kill Aaron. Aaron sticks out his chest to welcome Todd’s knife.
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...Todd about how it took Viola a long time to die. Todd finally brings his knife down but finds that he’s stabbing Viola instead. She calls him “killer,” then her whole...
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Chapter 30
A boy who wears a brown shirt like Todd and also has a knife comes up beside Todd. He asks Todd what they should do, so that Todd’s Noise...
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...on the verge of dying anyway and there’s no way to stop Aaron. The boy’s knife has blood on it, and he says he’s a killer, but Todd tells him to...
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Chapter 31
...he doesn’t want to have to resort to his backup plan, which is using the knife on Aaron.
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Chapter 35
...Snow’s Noise what the law demands for men from Prentisstown like Ben. He draws his knife, striking the hand of one of the men, while Viola bites the hand of another...
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Chapter 40
Aaron’s voice begins to get louder, so Todd grabs his knife. Todd thinks of how painful it would be to lose Viola, and all of a...
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Chapter 41
...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.
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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...
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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...
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Chapter 42
...At last, Viola says that even though she didn’t want to kill Aaron with the knife, she had to do it to stop Aaron from winning (by getting Todd to do...
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