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
A great chasm opens in front of John, which he briefly considers jumping into. As he steps away, parts of the castle fall in. The contents of “Papa” Monzano’s room plunge into the hole, including “Papa” himself in his golden boat. John closes his eyes and hears a sound “like that of the gentle closing of a portal as big as the sky, the great door of heaven being closed softly.” He describes this as a grand “AH-WHOOM.” Opening his eyes, he sees that the sea has turned into ice-nine. The sky darkens and is filled with tornadoes, likened to “worms.”
The apocalypse arrives as “Papa” Monzano’s body makes contact with the sea. The sound is that of practically all the world’s waters freezing into its ice-nine state. This throws the weather system into instant disarray, highlighting the fragile balance of different factors required to sustain life on earth.
Themes
