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Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Good Omens, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Good and Evil
Human Nature
Destiny vs. Free Will
Humor and Absurdity
Friendship
Summary
Analysis
Pepper uneasily asks what happened last night. Adam says it doesn’t matter—he just tried to help, and now people are treating him like he killed someone. His parents won’t let him out for years. Wensleydale asks if they might let him out tomorrow, and Adam says that they’ll have forgotten everything by then. He tells his friends to go on to the circus without him.
As the Antichrist, Adam knows exactly what happened last night—but in his quest to protect people by altering their memories, he’s not going to let anyone else in on what he knows. The fact that Adam is in trouble with his parents and can’t be honest with his friends speaks to the classic adage that no good deed goes unpunished—everything has a downside.
Themes
Late Sunday afternoon, Warlock is in an airplane high over England. It’s been a strange couple of days: his father was called to the Middle East, where a guy showed them around ruins and asked Warlock if he’d like to do anything. He’d looked upset when Warlock said he wanted to leave. Far below, Greasy Johnson is flipping through a photography magazine. He pauses on a spread about American football catching on in Europe (when the magazine was printed, the spread was about photography in desert conditions). This will change his life.
Previously, the novel heavily implied that Greasy Johnson is Baby B, the biological child of the American Attaché who was switched at birth with Warlock. It’s fitting, then, that Greasy Johnson’s life is going to change when he discovers American football. It’s implied that Adam will be responsible for introducing Greasy Johnson to football, which will seemingly bring him success in the future. Adam chooses to do this even though the Johnsonites are the Them’s rivals, which suggests that Adam is going to use his powers for good from here on out.
Themes
Adam thinks of all the things that are waiting on the other side of the hedge. In a stern voice, he tells Dog to stay away from the hedge—if Dog went through it, Adam would have to disobey his parents and follow. Suddenly, there’s a hole in the hedge—it’s always been there. Dog races through it, and Adam shouts at him as he follows. Somehow, Adam knows that something, perhaps summer, is coming to an end. He needs to make the most of it. He stops in the middle of a field and looks at the smoke coming from Jasmine Cottage. Adam can hear more than most people and he hears a laugh—and for an instant, he sees Agnes Nutter in the smoke. She winks at him.
When Adam is able to conjure the hole in the hedge that’s mysteriously always been there, it suggests that he hasn’t given up all of his powers as the Antichrist. He may be human, but he’s a human with the power to pursue his dreams and give himself some supernatural help along the way, as the situation requires. Given Adam’s age, it’s likely that it’s his childhood that’s coming to an end. But as Adam grows, it’s implied that he’ll only become more human, meaning that he’ll have to navigate a balance between good and evil.
Themes
Adam sits in the garden and scratches at the dirt. Last night, Mr. Young found Adam fast asleep—but at breakfast, Mr. Young made it clear that he’s not convinced Adam was in his room all night. Nobody is sure what happened last night, but Mr. Young is certain Adam is guilty of something. Adam looks up when Pepper, Wensleydale, and Brian call his name. There’s a circus over in Norton, and they want to watch it set up. Adam daydreams about being asked to perform with the circus, but he shakes his head. His parents won’t let him out.
Adam has a wild imagination—he’s still a boy of 11, after all. But now that he’s made his choice to accept his human parents as his true parents, Adam seems to feel a sense of responsibility to obey them. He’s still loyal to the Them, of course, but he nevertheless seems to feel like he has to make his choice clear to everyone else.
Themes
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Shadwell has followed the same Sunday routine for the last decade: he reads books in the WA’s library and eats liver prepared by Madame Tracy. But tonight, he accepted Madame Tracy’s invitation to eat in her flat, remembering an odd dream from last night—in it, he said that witch-finding is fun, but that he had to take turns and let the witches find him for once. Having eaten ate his liver, Shadwell now sits in an armchair, sipping a glass of stout. Madame Tracy puts down her tea and says that it would be nice to move out to the countryside. Shadwell agrees, and Madame Tracy asks if he’s comfortable. Surprisingly, Shadwell is. Madame Tracy giggles and asks where she could find someone to settle down with. Shadwell asks Madame Tracy how many men she’s slept with, and then he agrees to retire with her.
Shadwell’s dream suggests that Adam’s reach is more extensive than Aziraphale and Crowley might have thought. Adam has, in a way, expanded upon Agnes Nutter’s warning to not meddle. Now, he’s encouraging Shadwell to treat witch-finding like a game rather than taking it seriously. Though humorous, this also makes the case that anyone—even Shadwell—has the capacity to change when they encounter new information. Indeed, Shadwell has changed so much that he’s now willing to settle down with Madame Tracy.
Themes
Crowley says that they can never know for sure. He asks why there’s Heaven and Hell in the first place, and he notes that anyone who can build a universe in six days isn’t going to let little things get by unless it’s planned. Aziraphale tells Crowley to be sensible, but Crowley insists that looking at things sensibly yields funny results—for instance, why make people curious and put a metaphorical neon sign on forbidden fruit? Maybe it’s all part of a big, ineffable plan, and it’s just a test to see if things work right. It might be a game of Solitaire rather than chess; maybe they’re not supposed to understand. Crowley can’t come up with why, and the tall figure by the pond—Death—says that it’s just ineffable.
The idea that everyone is living in a game of Solitaire rather than chess suggests that the ongoing conflict between Heaven and Hell isn’t as meaningful as the Metatron and Beelzebub seemed to think. Indeed, if everything is a game of Solitaire, there’s only one player, meaning that there isn’t a conflict at all—both sides play a necessary role in the same game. But as Crowley asks these questions that are unanswerable, he places himself in the role of a human. It’s normal to ask questions and be curious, even if it’s impossible to come up with answers that are definitively true.
Themes
It’s about 11:30, and St. James’s park is quiet. The only people in the park are a tall man feeding the ducks, two members of a guerilla organization, and Crowley and Aziraphale. Crowley and Aziraphale discuss that things have gone back to the way they were: Crowley found a Bentley parked in front of his flat, and Aziraphale’s bookshop isn’t burnt (though it currently stocks only children’s books). Fortunately, the books are all mint first editions. Neither of their people have been in contact, and Crowley suggests that they’re getting ready for the “big one.” As he sees it, the actual big one will be Heaven and Hell against humanity, not Heaven against Hell. Adam may have changed everything, decided to stay human, and gotten rid of his power. Aziraphale hopes so.
Crowley and Aziraphale believe that Adam is responsible for this return to normalcy. Adam took it to heart that people would be happier if they didn’t really remember what happened—but as an angel and a demon, Aziraphale and Crowley aren’t exactly people. This means that they can enjoy being in the know and spend the next several hundred years trying to piece together exactly what happened with Armageddon. However, the novel does suggest that Crowley is probably correct about Adam giving up his powers and becoming human. Having Mr. Young show up instead of Satan implies that Adam chose to accept that his human father—not his divine one—is his real father.
Themes
Mr. Baddicombe lets himself in and puts the box on the table. He tells Newt that everyone at the firm is very interested, and says that someone wanted Newt to have the box. Mr. Baddicombe explains that the firm has had it for about 300 years. The struggling clerk who accepted the box long ago found a letter addressed to him. It included information about the next 10 years that would make him successful, provided he could make sure the box would stay safe for 300 years and then be delivered. Mr. Baddicombe says that two people have opened it: the first had a heart attack, and the second threatened to fire anyone who opened it.
The age of the box further suggests that this is Agnes Nutter’s work—300 years ago would put the firm receiving the box in the middle of the 17th century, around the time that Agnes died. Agnes’s warnings to those who tried to open the box again speak to the power of prophecy—Agnes was able to scare people into cooperation with probably just a tiny bit of information. She knew they’d buy it, so she was able to shape the future to her liking.
Themes
Newt suggests that Mr. Baddicombe opens the box, eyeing a saucepan. He edges behind a door and hears Mr. Baddicombe open a wax seal. Then, Mr. Baddicombe races back to his car and down the lane. Newt takes the pot off his head and reads the letters: each promises to reveal an inappropriate sexual encounter if the reader doesn’t put the box back. Under the letters is a manuscript. Anathema appears in the doorway and pulls out Further Nife and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Concerning the Worlde that Is to Com: Ye Saga Continuef! She prepares to open it, but Newt puts a hand on hers and asks if she wants to be a descendent for the rest of her life.
Having grown up free from the prophecies, Newt understands that there’s value in letting life unfold randomly. Indeed, by suggesting that Anathema not open Agnes’s next book, he proposes one of the novel’s most important ideas: that living one’s life by prophecies like this deprives a person of any individual identity. Anathema has lived her life only as Agnes’s descendent—if she’s willing to abandon that identity, she may be able to come up with something far more fulfilling to spend her time on.
Themes
Newt looks at the leather-bound block on the table: he can only make out a few letters of the title, and he can’t quite remember how he and Anathema got it. He remembers a man in sunglasses and grubby boys—and somehow, the Wasabi now runs quietly, gives its warnings in haikus, and gets 250 miles to the gallon. Newt stares into space until he hears a knock at the door. A small man smiles at him and says he has a package for Newt and Mrs. Pulsifer. Newt tells him that there’s no Mrs. Pulsifer, but the man says that the letter is quite specific. Finally, the man offers Newt a business card: it reads that he’s Giles Baddicombe of the firm Robey, Robey, Redfearn and Bychance.
While Anathema didn’t appreciate what Aziraphale did to her bike, there’s no indication that Newt is upset about the new, improved features on his Wasabi. Aziraphale has clearly found an appreciative audience. It’s no doubt confusing that Newt is receiving a package, addressed to Anathema’s house—one that assumes he and Anathema are married. This suggests the possibility that Agnes is at it again with her prophecies—and given the accuracy of her other predictions, this package suggests that Newt and Anathema will indeed get married one day.
Themes
Newt wakes on Sunday morning to the sound of the paperboy dropping three stacks of Sunday papers on the steps. He lets Anathema sleep—she needs her rest now that there are no more prophecies to attend to. The phone rings, and Newt declines a telemarketer’s offer of double-glazing. He refuses to wake Anathema up to ask her and thinks that something awful should happen to telemarketers. Then, he starts preparing breakfast and makes do with instant black coffee.
Newt, of course, doesn’t realize that something did happen to telemarketers yesterday, when Hastur destroyed the telemarketers through Crowley’s ansaphone. However, this wasn’t enough to wipe all telemarketers off the face of the Earth. Anathema’s exhaustion suggests that she’s going to have to adjust to a new way of living now that Armageddon is over. But now, she’ll have the opportunity to decide who she wants to be, rather than letting someone else dictate her path.
Themes
Adam runs on and catches up with Dog. He looks up at the old apple tree above and climbs it quickly, pocketing as many apples as he can. A voice threatens to tell Mr. Young, so Adam and Dog run away. Adam knows he’ll be in trouble now, but not until evening. Adam doesn’t understand why people get so bent out of shape about others eating their fruit—but life wouldn’t be nearly as much fun if people didn’t get upset. In Adam’s opinion, apples are always worth the trouble. The future, according to the narrator, is a boy, his dog, and his friends walking toward Tadfield forever.
The apples Adam steals recall the Forbidden Fruit that Adam and Eve ate off the Tree of Knowledge. By insisting that it’s always fun and worthwhile to steal fruit, Adam essentially suggests that all the things that define humanity (like curiosity, the ability to grow, and the ability to make mistakes) are worth the trouble. It’s the interplay between good, evil, and curiosity that makes life worth living.
Themes
