The Thorn Birds: Chapter 17 Summary & Analysis

In 1954, when Justine is 17 years old, she announces to Meggie that she has made a final decision about her future: she plans to become an actress. Meggie, caught off guard, reacts with disbelief. She questions whether Justine has the right looks for acting, prompting Justine to explain that she does not aspire to be a film star but a serious stage actress. Justine already has plans to train with Albert Jones at the Culloden Theatre and hopes to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She adds that she has enough money to support herself because of Ralph’s financial support.

Meggie tries to persuade Justine to consider becoming an artist instead, reminding her that she has income from Drogheda and would never starve. Justine dismisses the idea, saying she would rather be famous in life than after death. She prefers acting for income and painting for pleasure. Despite Meggie’s persistence, Justine firmly insists that she is committed to acting and has no interest in marriage or domestic life.

Justine mocks the idea of marriage, claiming she has no desire to be tied down wiping noses and serving a husband. Meggie expresses concern over her daughter’s language and attitude, which only prompts more sarcasm and cheekiness from Justine. When Meggie presses further about her daughter’s aversion to marriage, Justine lashes out, saying her mother is hardly in a position to champion it. The comment wounds Meggie, though she continues the conversation anyway. At this, Justine softens slightly, saying she respects Meggie’s choice to live without a husband and does not view her as a failure.

Their sparring ends when Meggie offers to take Justine into town to sort out her finances and gives her permission to come home anytime. Touched, Justine drops her sarcasm for a time. Fiona enters and hears the end of the conversation. When told about Justine’s plans, Fiona reacts with little surprise and says she thinks Justine will make a good actress, praising her granddaughter’s decisiveness and strong will.

Meggie is stunned that Fiona supports Justine’s choice so readily. Fiona says she has always believed children should be allowed to live their own lives. As they settle down with tea, Fiona tries to mediate, asking Justine why she makes her arguments with Meggie so combative. She encourages Justine to explain that acting is her true vocation, not just a bid for fame. Reluctantly, Justine agrees, saying that acting feels like something she is meant to do.

Fiona warns Justine about the dangers of pride and urges her to cooperate more with her mother. Though Justine insists she cannot change how she is, she thanks Fiona for supporting her decision. Fiona asks her to show gratitude by fetching Frank for tea. After Justine leaves, Meggie marvels at Fiona’s unflappable calm. Fiona remarks that she never told her children what to do, and Meggie thanks her with real affection. Despite her doubts, Fiona confidence in Justine’s future comforts Meggie.

Soon after, Justine moves to Sydney and finds a tiny flat in Neutral Bay, a converted Victorian mansion with shared facilities. Though the rent is high, she is content. Her days are split between acting school, where she spends most of her time observing and memorizing lines, and her new life among the strange and lively tenants of Bothwell Gardens. During this time, Justine begins a short-lived affair with Arthur Leslie, a quiet and married man much older than herself. With Arthur, she loses her virginity, feeling no great emotional attachment but rather a sense of relief that the mystery and burden of her innocence are behind her. The relationship quickly ends without drama, and Justine moves on without regret, more determined than ever to devote herself completely to her ambition as an actress.

Meanwhile, Meggie and Dane lie sunbathing near the pond on Drogheda, where Meggie muses on her aging body and the memories that haunt her in this place. As Dane stands to stretch, Meggie sees him not as a boy but a grown man, and this realization floods her with conflicting emotions. She thinks of Ralph and sees him in Dane’s beauty. Disturbed by the thought of her son’s maturity and what it represents, she blurts out a question about his experience with women. Dane gently assures her that he has none and takes the opportunity to confess what he has long struggled to say: he does not want to pursue a romantic or physical life at all.

Dane tells Meggie he has decided to become a priest, believing that the only way to fully love God is to give up all else, including a life with a woman. Meggie listens, stunned, unable to comprehend or accept the choice. As he describes his growing sense of religious devotion and the sacrifice required of him, Meggie feels a cold wind sweep over her. She recoils at the thought of losing him to the Church, just as she has lost Ralph. She recognizes that Dane, like Ralph, has been chosen by something beyond her. Her grief quickly turns to panic as she tries to protest and stop him.

Dane continues, saying he must give up his life as a man to show his absolute devotion. His words devastate Meggie, who grabs his arm in anguish and declares that she will not allow it. She sees how much Dane resembles Ralph, both in body and soul, and this intensifies her sense of despair. But Dane remains calm, saying that he has made his choice freely and is prepared for the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. When she sees the marks that her nails have left on his skin, Meggie releases him and begins to laugh uncontrollably.

Meggie’s hysterical laughter gives way to furious mockery of God, whom she blames for undoing everything women strive to protect. She calls God her enemy and sees Dane’s decision as a divine punishment for her own past, though she does not say so out loud. Meggie’s reaction upsets Dane, who did not expect her to react so strongly. Meggie realizes how deeply she has hurt him and immediately tries to recover, pretending to be proud and supportive of his decision. She reassures him that she is glad for him and insists he go share the news with the others.

Once he has gone, Meggie’s composure crumbles again. She drives herself to the big house and joins Fiona and Anne Mueller in the drawing room, where she relates Dane’s decision. Anne and Fiona try to comfort her, but Meggie remains convinced that she is being punished. She recalls how she believed she could keep Dane and defy God. Now, she sees this as retribution—God reclaiming what she had stolen. She declares that Dane must go to Ralph in Rome for his training. Since Ralph helped create him, she believes he should take responsibility for Dane’s future.

Meggie resolves to send Dane to Ralph without ever revealing the truth. Anne and Fiona both ask whether Ralph knows Dane is his son, and Meggie says firmly that he does not—and never will. She refuses to give Ralph anything more than the boy himself. For her, that boundary must remain intact. Justine, however, is furious when she learns of Dane’s plan. Though she had long suspected it, the finality of it enrages her. She has always known how deeply Dane valued the Church and ritual, but still hoped he would not go so far as to renounce ordinary life entirely.

Justine cannot understand Dane’s rejection of sensual and emotional experience, especially given his physical beauty. She thinks about on how uncomfortable he is with his appearance, how he seems to fear or hate it. She also notes that he exhausts himself with daily sports, perhaps to suppress sexual urges. When Dane finally tells her backstage at the theater that he is going to Rome to study under Ralph, she lashes out. But her fury quickly gives way to a practical decision: she will move to England to stay close to him.

Some time later, Justine arrives in Rome and joins Dane, who has arranged a comfortable place for her to stay. They plan to travel together before returning to Drogheda, but for now, Dane invites her to meet some close friends. Justine agrees, curious but wary of his connections. When she learns that Ralph and Cardinal di Contini-Verchese will be present, she promises to behave. She dresses casually and feels out of place among the scarlet-clad churchmen but goes through the motions politely. At the gathering, she meets an older man, Rainer Moerling Hartheim, a layman among clerics, and explains to him how foreign and excluding the world of the Vatican feels to her.

Although Justine bristles at the patriarchal atmosphere, she takes a liking to Rainer. Their banter is playful but edged with mutual curiosity. When Cardinal Vittorio suggests they pretend Ralph is Dane’s uncle to make Vatican social appearances easier, Justine inadvertently reveals that Ralph is not a family relation at all, unwittingly guarding Meggie’s secret. Rainer picks up on the contradiction, recognizing Dane’s physical resemblance to Ralph, but chooses not to press Justine further. Later, Rainer escorts her to dinner, where their conversation turns personal. Justine insists on independence and control in her life, while Rainer, fascinated by her boldness, playfully calls her a monster.

Over dinner, Rainer describes his experiences on the Eastern Front, where he witnessed executions, starvation, and the collapse of his idealism. He returned to Germany after the war and chose to rebuild his life through strategic decisions: he married a wealthy industrialist’s daughter, used her connections to enter business, and climbed into politics through sheer pragmatism.

Days later, Justine grows restless in Rome, impatient with Dane’s monastic life and her own purposelessness in the city. She complains that she has become irrelevant in his world, longing for their planned travels through France and Spain. Because Dane is busy, she often spends time with Rainer. After spending a good deal of time together, Justine asks Rainer why he likes her so much. Rainer does not answer the question directly, so Justine decides that the two of them are merely friends and nothing more.

Their conversation shifts as Justine asks Rainer about his past marriage. Rainer admits that he did not love his wife, but that she loved him. Unbothered, Justine says she admires him more for his honesty. Their back-and-forth deepens Justine’s understanding of him, while he continues to be surprised and touched by her resilience. She explains that she and Meggie never connected emotionally, and she envies Dane’s bond with their mother.

They also talk about acting. Justine explains how she conserves her emotions offstage to invest them in her roles. She believes she channels other lives through herself without becoming anyone else, which gives her control and power. Acting, for her, is an intellectual and emotional merger, not pure performance. Rainer, impressed by her passion, acknowledges that she does not waste herself on everyday life. They part on this note, both recognizing the rare companionship they have found. Though they remain different in many ways, Rainer feels something has shifted. For both, the encounter has been unexpected—and quietly transformative.