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Part 1, Chapter 8
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Buddenbrooks, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Family and Sacrifice
Tradition, Modernity, and Change
The Protestant Ethic
Personal Fulfillment and Self-Knowledge
Pretense and Etiquette
Summary
Analysis
At last, the party winds down. Bethsy leaves Ida in charge of the cleanup and goes to see how Christian is doing. The consul accompanies the guests to the entrance hall to see them off. Outside, the wind is so strong that it’s practically raining sideways, making the yellow oil lamps flicker. After everyone has left, the consul heads upstairs to at last approach his father (Johann) about Gotthold’s letter.
Bethsy dotes on her sick child, revealing herself to be an attentive (if perhaps too indulgent) mother. In the novel, yellow tends to symbolize conflict or moral decay, so the yellow flickering of the oil lamp in this scene perhaps foreshadows trouble ahead for the Buddenbrooks—they’ve enjoyed a long and lively meal with close friends and family, but can those good times last forever? The consul’s first mission upon bidding farewell to the last of his guests—dealing with Gotthold’s terse letter—indicates that at least in the immediate future, things will take a turn for the worse.
Active
Themes
