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Chapter 13
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Thorn Birds, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Forbidden Love and Desire
Religious Duty
Gender Roles and Limitations
Loss and Grief
Ambition and Personal Sacrifice
Summary
Analysis
Meggie returns quietly to Drogheda with Justine, riding with Bluey Williams, the mail man, in his mail truck. As they near the homestead, Bluey senses Meggie’s wish for silence. Meggie look at the familiar landscape with deep affection—the sparse, brown land, the wildlife, the dusty air, and the skeletons of old trees. When they arrive, Mrs. Smith greets Meggie with laughter and tears. When Fiona comes to see what is going on, Meggie announces that she has come home for good and that she is expecting another child. Fiona accepts the news with calm approval, and Meggie is given her old room with a second room set aside for Justine and the coming baby.
Meggie’s return to Drogheda brings a quiet sense of relief, a homecoming that contrasts sharply with the isolation and suffering she endured with Luke. Mrs. Smith’s emotional welcome and Fiona’s calm acceptance illustrate the contrasting ways love appears at Drogheda: warm and open from those who care deeply, measured and pragmatic from those like Fiona. Meggie immediately claims her old room and prepares a space for Justine and her unborn child, symbolically reclaiming her place in the family and affirming her determination to rebuild her life.
Themes
Meggie soon settles back into life at Drogheda. Bob, who has grown more like Paddy, welcomes her warmly, as do Jack and Hughie. The drought is the worst in memory, with two years passing without rain and rabbits devastating the grasslands. Bob and the others explain the difficulties they face keeping the sheep alive, and Meggie offers to help by riding the paddocks. Additionally, Jims and Patsy have left school to work at Drogheda full-time.
Meggie’s return to Drogheda quickly becomes a return to responsibility. The drought’s severity and the rabbit infestation force the family into survival mode. Bob, now more like Paddy in his leadership, represents the family’s continued reliance on hard work and sacrifice. Meggie’s willingness to help by riding the paddocks shows her resilience and determination to contribute, even while pregnant.
Themes
Meggie mourns the loss of her old horses, but Bob buys her two new part-thoroughbred hacks from Martin King. Riding again gives her great happiness despite the grim conditions of the land. Rabbits have worsened the drought damage by stripping the grass cover. Meggie learns to trap rabbits without hesitation, understanding the necessity of killing for survival. She and Bob both lament the damage caused by the introduction of rabbits from England, which had no natural predators in Australia and upset the land’s delicate balance.
Riding brings Meggie a rare sense of freedom amid the harsh conditions of Drogheda. The new horses, a gift from Bob, offer her a connection to the land and a reminder of her independence. Yet this small joy is tempered by the brutal reality of survival. The land’s suffering, worsened by the unchecked rabbits, symbolizes the fragile balance of life in the Outback where beauty and destruction exist side by side.
Themes
As Meggie’s pregnancy progresses, she spends more time indoors, sewing and knitting for the new baby while observing Justine. Unlike her easygoing babyhood, Justine grows into a solemn, self-willed child who resists affection from both Meggie and Mrs. Smith. She walks and talks early, but she remains aloof, already demonstrating a strong and independent character. Meggie begins to recognize the strength of spirit that seems to have come from a powerful mixture of Cleary, Armstrong, and O’Neill bloodlines.
Meggie’s pregnancy shifts her focus inward, but it also heightens her awareness of Justine’s developing personality. Justine’s early independence and emotional distance unsettle Meggie, who senses a fierce self-reliance in her daughter that is reminiscent of Luke. Meggie longs for a closer bond but finds herself shut out, realizing that Justine’s resilience may come at the cost of closeness and vulnerability.
Themes
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On October 1, Meggie gives birth to a son she names Dane. The labor is quick and relatively painless, and unlike with Justine, she is able to nurse him. Dane is fair-haired and blue-eyed, bearing an unmistakable resemblance to Ralph rather than Luke, though Meggie takes comfort in the fact that Luke and Ralph look similar. She decides never to reveal Dane’s true parentage, viewing him as her lasting link to Ralph. Meanwhile, Ralph arrives in Rome and meets Cardinal Vittorio. He confesses his sins and prepares for his future duties amid the growing threat of war in Europe.
Dane’s birth offers Meggie a sense of healing and purpose. The ease of his delivery and the ability to nurse him make him Dane feel like a gift rather than a burden—the opposite of Justine’s birth. His unmistakable resemblance to Ralph deepens this feeling, turning him into a living connection to the man she still loves. Meggie and Ralph remain bound by Dane, but their choices push them onto divergent paths.
Themes
