35 pages • 1 hour read
Charlie MackesyThe Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse
Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Summary
Background
Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Character Analysis
Themes
Symbols & Motifs
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
Tools
BetaSymbols & Motifs
The Storm
The storm is a motif that emphasizes The Value of Friendship. Literally, the four friends encounter dark clouds rolling in, and the horse says that when this happens, they should “keep going.” Figuratively, this represents the storms of life, such as pain, loss, grief, or disappointment. The story presents the symbolic storm optimistically, as an episode that passes after a while, and is made more endurable by the support of friends.
The book suggests that the metaphorical storm can make people “feel out of control,” as the horse says, but that it is possible to “focus on what you love right under your nose” (93). For the friends, during this literal storm, that is each other: In one illustration, the friends literally sit nose-to-nose while the rain is pouring down (95). The horse reassures them that, literally and figuratively, the storm “will pass” because they always do. This expresses the story’s message that time lessens the pain or hurt of life’s challenges, combined with the friends who support and love us through these times.
Once the storm moves on, the boy is depicted lying draped atop the horse’s back in a black and white illustration, evidently exhausted by the experience, a feeling emphasized by the lack of color (96). However, in the very next illustration, deep colors saturate the landscape and characters, and the boy sits up again (97). The colors indicate a tranquil completion to the period of difficulty, as though the landscape is revived by the rain, and the characters appreciate its beauty anew because they see its freshness in light of the darkness they just survived. That they can support and rely on one another to survive the storm is an indication of friendship’s significance in our lives.
The Snare
The snare in which the fox becomes trapped, and from which the mole frees him, is a symbol that highlights The Freedom to Choose Our Reactions. The snare represents life’s dangers and the possibility that we may be helped by others. When the boy and the mole come upon the ensnared fox, the mole mindfully chooses his response to the predator, opting not to give in to fear of this animal who could easily overpower him. Faced with the boy and the courageous mole, the fox chooses to respond viciously, physically threatening the creature. Despite this reaction and the fox’s promise of violence, the mole chooses courage and compassion, freeing the fox from the snare even though it could be the only thing that stands between him and death. The mole knows that the fox will certainly die if he “stay[s] in that snare,” and so he intentionally chooses a kind and empathetic reaction to this fact (21). This demonstrates the mole’s loving character and the fact that he values compassion even more than his life.
Further, the mole’s reaction to the snare prompts the fox to react in an unexpectedly loving way. Despite his initial threat, he walks away from the mole and the boy, though he doesn’t go far. He remains close enough to observe the mole slipping into a body of water the next day, and he quickly emerges to save the mole from drowning. It is, however, being caught in the snare that initiates the mole’s brave response to the fox, and this elicits the fox’s loving reaction to the mole. These responses initiate the friendship between the fox and others, leading to the fox’s ability to enjoy the support and love of friendship and begin to understand his own worth.
Home
Home is a recurrent motif that demonstrates The Value of Friendship. It is introduced by the boy’s admission that he sometimes “feel[s] lost”; in response, the mole says, “Me too […], but we love you, and love brings you home” (41). The boy conceives of “home” as a physical location that meets certain requirements. The mole, however, already recognizes that home has more to do with love than it does with any literal space. Instead, home is a feeling created by other feelings, such as being loved, supported, and wholly accepted by others. As if to confirm this, the mole says, “I think everyone is just trying to get home” (43). This equates “home” not with a physical place but with a group that offers the belonging of love, support, and acceptance.
Friends are also shown to be a substitute for home and a consolation. When the horse asks about his friends’ “reason to keep going,” the fox names the group explicitly, while the boy cites “Getting home,” and the mole ultimately decides on hugs (60). In essence, then, the friends all give the same answer, responses that link the emotional connection friends share with the concept of home. It is this same love and acceptance that enables the horse to feel safe sharing that he can fly, something he learned to hide because of how it made his peers feel. With this group, however, he can be wholly and authentically himself, another component of “home” and reason our friendships are so valuable. Ultimately, the boy realizes that “Home isn’t always a place,” and the full-color illustration depicts the four friends together under a dark sky (111). The pervasiveness of blue in the picture indicates the peace one achieves when they are in presence of those who love and accept them fully.
