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Part 3, Chapter 14
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
On a cold February day, Thomas Buddenbrook walks down Meng Strasse. He turns down Breite street to avoid having to greet any acquaintances. He enters a flower shop. Inside, the salesgirl is helping an old woman. After the old woman leaves, Tom approaches the salesgirl, calling her “my little Anna.” He tells her he comes with bad news: he’s leaving for Amsterdam the day after tomorrow. Anna starts to cry, and Thomas urges her to be strong: they both knew this day would come. Things will be what they’ll be: and besides, he and Anna never discussed marriage.
The discreet route Thomas takes to the flower shop—so that he can avoid being spotted by family or associates—indicates that this clearly romantic relationship he has had with the salesgirl, Anna, is a secret. Anna, like Morten Schwarzkopf, is a mere working-class person, and as such isn’t a suitable match for a Buddenbrook (by the rigid class hierarchy that dictates their society’s norms). Thomas, like Tony before him, must make personal sacrifices for the sake of familial duty. Still, Thomas ends the breakup in a rather cold and detached way, minimizing the significance of the relationship when he justifies the breakup on the grounds that they never discussed marriage. His uncaring rejection of Anna symbolizes his broader prioritization of business over humanity and common decency.
Active
Themes
