Most rats, Botticelli suggests, will never understand the power of forgiveness, as it’s abhorrent to them. This reinforces that in this world, rats are overwhelmingly dark and evil. When Despereaux notes that soup is good despite being illegal, he acknowledges that laws don’t always make sense—something being illegal doesn’t make it bad, it just makes it illegal. This is a more mature way of looking at the world, and it implies that Despereaux has grown up.