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Chapter 4
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Tomorrow, When the War Began, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
War, Law, and Morality
Family, Friendship, and Love
Coming of Age, Transformation, and the Loss of Innocence
Writing and Storytelling
Summary
Analysis
Each day gets lazier than the last. Ellie and the others keep saying they are going for a long hike, but they never actually do it. They just lay around and eat. Ellie and Corrie go for a few walks—nothing too far—and talk about their future and traveling overseas. They want to go to Indonesia, Thailand, China, India, and then Egypt. Corrie wants to go to Africa, but Ellie wants to go to Europe. Corrie has always wanted to be a nurse and go where the people need her most, and Ellie admires her for that. Ellie just wants to make money.
The portrayal of Ellie and the others as lazy teenagers continues, sharply contrasting with the flurry of activity that’s likely happening back home. Ellie and Corrie’s talk lends valuable insight into their characters. Corrie, evident by her desire to be a nurse, is caring and thinks first and foremost about other people, which implies a high moral standing. Ellie, on the other hand, appears quite selfish. She wants to make money, not help others.
Themes
On the last day in Hell, food is running short, but no one wants to walk back to the Land Rover for more. They decide to make do with the remaining snacks, even though they are out of all the staples. Homer keeps staring at Fiona, but she refuses to talk to Ellie about him. Instead, Fiona pretends that she doesn’t notice Homer’s attention. Ellie is surprised that the group has only had a few small arguments over the last five days, like Kevin giving Fiona a hard time for disappearing when there is work to do, or Corrie getting mad at Homer for some stupid prank. Robyn even told Ellie she was bossy, which hurt Ellie’s feelings just a bit.
Ellie and her friends have a close connection, but they still have fights and disagreements. These arguments suggests that friendship, which is undoubtedly important and wonderful, is not always easy. Additionally, such arguments lend further insight into the characters. Fiona’s disappearance during work reflects her pampered nature, Homer’s pranks on Corrie underscore his playfulness, and Ellie clearly likes to be in control.
Themes
Their dumbest fight, which Ellie supposes all fights are, was when they couldn’t agree on which color car was the least conspicuous. On their last night, they played True Confessions, and Robyn confessed that Hell was the best place ever. She made them all promise to come back and to keep their spot a secret, so it isn’t overrun with people looking for a good campsite. They swore they would look for the Hermit’s hut next time and went to bed. Ellie, couldn’t sleep, just like the last few nights. She has been struck by “some kind of strange anxiety.”
Ellie’s “strange anxiety” and sleeplessness serves as a bit of foreshadowing. Readers can infer from the title of Marsden’s book that a war is indeed coming, even if Ellie and the others don’t yet realize this. Ellie’s anxiousness is like a premonition—she can sense that something isn’t right, and it is affecting her sleep and making her uncomfortable.
Themes
It is 11:00 a.m. by the time the group sets off for the Land Rover. They put out the fire, bid Hell farewell, and begin the long and difficult walk up Tailor’s Stitch. Homer walks close to Fiona, and Ellie wonders if maybe Fiona actually likes him—stranger things have happened. Their packs are considerably lighter, minus all the food, but the hike is still tough. They stop for a break on Wombegonoo, but not for too long, because no one brought any extra water. After a 40 minute hike, they finally reach the Land Rover and fall against it with relief. They immediately go for the water and tear into the extra food.
The fact that Ellie and the others don’t bring any extra water on their hike back to the Land Rover again reflects their young age and irresponsibility. Likely, they don’t want to carry the heavy water back up the steep incline, making their bags considerably heavier. Hiking any distance in the Australian bush without water isn’t a good idea; dehydration can occur quickly and without warning, and it can be life threatening.
Themes
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Ellie thinks about a story she heard about prisoners of war being grateful for any scrap of food, but then two days after their release, they complained about chicken soup instead of tomato. That’s how this group is—“and still is,” Ellie writes. Ellie remembers an ice cream cone she had thrown away from the freezer at home because it was freezer burned. Ellie wishes she had that ice cream now, but she supposes she would throw it out again after being home for a few hours.
Ellie’s interruption to the story and her comparison of her friends to prisoners of war is another moment of foreshadowing. Ellie’s story implies that the group will again be in a situation in which food is in short supply, which suggests something out of the ordinary is about to happen.
Themes
No one is in any real hurry to get home, except for Ellie, but she thinks about how Robyn called her bossy and keeps her mouth shut. By midafternoon, everyone is ready to leave, and they pile into the Land Rover. The drive down Tailor’s Stitch is just as slow going as it was on the way up, and Ellie is getting more and more impatient. As they bounce down the path, they notice six different fires burning in the distance, two of them quite big. It is too early for fire season, but no one really thinks much of it.
The fires burning in the distance again suggest that something out of the ordinary—and something quite serious, since two of the fires are large—is happening in town. Ellie’s growing impatience and anxiety implies this as well. Ellie knows something isn’t right, she just doesn’t know what. This passage also underscores how difficult friendship can be. It has been hours since Robyn called Ellie bossy, but it is still affecting Ellie.
Themes
When they reach the river, there is a vote to stop and swim, much to Ellie’s dismay. She swims for only a few minutes, and then Lee sits down next to her and asks why she seems to upset. Ellie says she doesn’t know but thinks that she just wants to get home. Lee admits that he feels the same way, and Ellie is surprised, given that he doesn’t seem upset at all. Ellie wonders if she is just feeling guilty. She left her dad with an awful lot of work by skipping out on the Show, and Lee says he always feels that way when he leaves his parents at the restaurant. The others finally get out of the river. Robyn and Fiona are last, and Homer watches Fiona as she goes back to the Land Rover. They are about 30 minutes from home.
Even though Ellie and Lee are just teenagers, they still have major responsibilities. It is clear that Ellie helps her father significantly on their livestock farm, and Lee helps his parents at the family restaurant. Ellie and Lee’s guilt at leaving their parents alone with so much work again underscores their inherent goodness and morality. They are both good kids, even though they can be lazy and selfish at times. Lee is clearly feeling anxious just like Ellie, which again suggests something out of the ordinary has happened.
Themes
