Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Cat’s Cradle, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Science and Morality
Religion
Governance, Politics, and Nationhood
Absurdity and Meaninglessness
Summary
Analysis
All Angela can say in response to what she is seeing is ‘Uck.” Newt, looking down at the deceased Dr. Koenigswald, says that what’s happened is “like the dog” on the night Dr. Hoenikker died, but doesn’t clarify what he means. Newt asks Frank if he gave “Papa” the ice-nine, and if the promise of ice-nine was how he got “this fancy job” on San Lorenzo. Frank is visibly distressed, before saying, “we’ve got to clean up this mess.”
Angela is appropriately speechless as she is not able to take any responsibility for what’s happening. And, in a way, no-one in the novel is directly responsible for the release of ice-nine. Responsibility is shared out and dissipated until it ceases to exist.
Themes
