Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Copper Sun, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Slavery, Dehumanization, and Resistance
Horror vs. Beauty
Friendship
Memory and Storytelling
Gender, Race, and Power
Summary
Analysis
Amari isn’t able to catch any more fish. Polly and Tidbit seem to have recovered from the mayapples, but Amari still feels nauseous and dizzy often. The forest begins to thin, which makes traveling unnoticed difficult. One evening, Amari stumbles over a log. While she’s on the ground, she looks under the log and finds a bunch of bugs. She grabs a handful of grubs, says they’re safe to eat, and tells Tidbit that they taste like chicken. Surprisingly, they join her in eating some. They continue to walk, occasionally crossing streams that yield crabs or clams. No one seems to be after them, and Amari wonders if Cato was right.
Because Amari is so focused on survival, she only looks at her illness in terms of how it might affect her survival and her ability to keep traveling. It’s a testament to Polly and Tidbit’s willingness to trust and forgive Amari for her mayapple mistake that they join her in eating bugs—though it also speaks to their understanding that they’re all going to have to make sacrifices and take chances if they hope to make it.
Themes
One morning, Tidbit cries out that Hushpuppy is gone. Amari and Polly assure him that Hushpuppy is just hunting mice and will come back soon. However, Hushpuppy hasn’t returned by evening. Tidbit refuses to go, but the girls insist he come. It starts to feel like rain, which both Amari and Polly are thrilled about—but Tidbit wails that Hushpuppy won’t find him now. Amari picks Tidbit up and carries him, wondering if they’re just going in circles. When she’s totally exhausted, they come upon a cave and decide it’s probably safe to start a fire. Amari mimics Mother’s way of starting a fire, but she realizes she’s never had to start one from scratch. After a while, smoke finally rises from the twigs and leaves.
Even though Amari is far away from home, she’s still able to call on the memories of her mother to start a fire. By doing this, she’s able to feel more connected to her past and introduce both Polly and Tidbit to another aspect of her native culture. For Tidbit, losing Hushpuppy represents a total loss of family and of meaning. The girls are fine, but Hushpuppy has been Tidbit’s constant companion for a while now—and losing him only compounds Tidbit’s grief for Teenie.
Themes
Amari feels weak and dizzy. She suggests they use the gun for food, but Polly reminds her that they might miss and someone could hear them. Tidbit falls asleep in Amari’s arms and Amari sits close to Polly. She remembers the cooking fires from home and can almost smell fish stew. Suddenly, she hears an animal outside the cave and grabs Polly’s arm. They can’t tell what it is and they don’t have enough wood to keep the fire going—or a stick to defend themselves. The animal creeps forward and leaps over the dying fire. The girls scream, but Tidbit wakes up—it’s Hushpuppy with a fat rabbit in his mouth. Amari skins the rabbit while the others gather wood and they cook the rabbit on the fire. When they’re full, Amari holds Tidbit close and remembers her mother. Then, she focuses on what’s ahead.
Amari’s ability to think back to cooking fires and fish stew speaks to how preferable it is to be on the run and hungry than it is to be enslaved. These happy memories of home weren’t enough to distract her from the horrors of being raped by Clay—but here, they’re enough to distract her from her hunger and her fears. Hushpuppy’s return provides both levity and much-needed sustenance for the travelers and impresses upon the reader the need to trust one’s traveling companions. Tidbit seemingly doesn’t need to fear that Hushpuppy will run away, as it seems he’ll always come back to the boy he loves.
Themes
