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Chapter Seventeen
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Tuck Everlasting, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Purpose of Living
Childhood, Independence, and Maturity
Nature and the Cycle of Life
Morality, Choices, and Friendship
Summary
Analysis
When Miles and Winnie return to the house, Miles tells Mae that they didn't catch anything they wanted to keep. Mae makes flapjacks and is serving them when Jesse comes down from the loft. He's perturbed that there's no fish and good-naturedly insults Miles's fishing abilities. They all head to the parlor to eat and Angus reminds them that they have to figure out how to get Winnie home without the horse. Mae tells him to finish breakfast before they discuss it. Winnie joyfully licks syrup off her fingers and thinks that the Tucks aren't criminals, though they might be crazy.
The fact that Miles keeps Winnie's embarrassment about the trout a secret indicates that he believes Winnie is entitled to privacy and secrets, just like any of the adults in the house. This in turn helps Winnie decide to trust the Tucks, as they treat her with kindness, empathy, and care.
Themes
Angus asks Winnie how she slept. Winnie says she slept well and then silently wishes that she could stay and grow up here. She thinks about drinking from the spring when she's 17 as she looks at Jesse, then Miles, and then the sad look on Angus's face. Then, someone knocks at the door. The Tucks are shocked, as they've never had visitors. Mae goes to the door and opens it. It's the man in the yellow suit.
Fixating on Angus's sad face implies that Winnie understands that Angus's experience of being immortal is one that she should pay attention to, as it's even less fulfilling than Jesse’s or Miles's. This begins to give Winnie reason to not drink from the stream when she's 17 and indicates that she’s gaining some appreciation of how complex this issue is.
Themes
