Previous
Homer
Penny is an enslaved woman on Boss-Master and Missus’s plantation. She’s also Hero’s lover. She is based in part on the character of Odysseus’s wife, Penelope, from the Odyssey. As a version of Penelope, Penny’s main attribute is faithfulness. She remains loyal to Hero even after she learns that he turned in the runaway Homer at Boss-Master’s request. She remains loyal to him after he goes away to war, and she’s even prepared to stay on the plantation rather than run away with Homer and First, Second, and Third Runaway if there’s a chance that Hero will come back dead or alive. However, Penny is more than an example of faithfulness. She’s also kind and loving and in the end, she values herself more than she values her fidelity to Hero. Along with Homer, she shelters the Runaways despite the danger. She becomes Homer’s lover during Hero’s absence, even though she still loves Hero. It’s only when she truly realizes who Hero is—that he is ultimately selfish and unloyal to his friends—that she decides to leave him. In doing so, Penny demonstrates her own strength of character, resilience, and personal embrace of freedom.
Penny Quotes in Father Comes Home from the Wars
The Father Comes Home from the Wars quotes below are all either spoken by Penny or refer to Penny. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1 Quotes
PENNY
But you don’t want to go.
You don’t want to.
You told me so.
[…]
“I got to tell you my mind before the others meddle with me and twist me up,” you said.
Cause you knew. You knew that’s what they do.
Planting their own seeds into you.
Using you worse than Boss-Master does.
“I’m not going,” you said.
[…]
And oh, oh, I was afeard for you.
Crossing Boss-Master is a horrible thing.
That’s what went through my head.
But also, it was sweet
Even though it was terrifying it was sweet.
That you was not gonna raise a hand against your own cause
that you was not gonna help out Master.
That you would stand up.
That you would stay home.
At least that’s what I thought I heard.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
When Penny arrives to find Hero wearing the Confederate uniform, she is distressed by his evident choice to follow Boss-Master to fight in the Civil War. She outlines her reasons for being upset in this passage. First and foremost, she experiences his choice to go as a betrayal of hers and Hero’s bond, because it contradicts what Hero told her in private earlier in the morning. But she’s also concerned because she knows that Boss-Master isn’t trustworthy. Furthermore, she quickly identifies the ways in which Hero’s decision contradicts his real interests as well as hers—and those of all the other Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut
THIRD
It’s still dark out
There’s still time to reconsider
Hero you were born perfect and lived your whole life
Is that to end here? Is that to end now
In front of a ruined cabin with an old knife?
HERO
Harm won’t come to no one but me.
FOURTH
Won’t some angel come
And hold back the hand?
Where is the big voice
Telling us that this is just some kind of test
To see if we were willing to follow the path.
Where is the path? Where is the path?!
The path, it isn’t marked.
Won’t some spirit comes down,
Some angel, some light, some mercy?
LEADER
[…]
Homer is coming. Maybe we should wait for him.
He might have an idea for this.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
When Hero decides to stay, he worries that Boss-Master will beat him and the others as retribution for being crossed. To prevent this, he asks Penny and Old Man to cut off his foot so there’s no way for him to go to war. As they steel themselves for the act, the chorus of Less Than Desirable Slaves gives voice to everyone’s distress. Fourth Less Desirable alludes to Gensis 22:1-19, a biblical story in which God tests Abraham’s faith by ordering him to offer his only child, Isaac, as a human sacrifice. Abraham prepares to follow through on the horrific Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas.
LEADER
Freedom in exchange for giving Homer away?
And you said yes.
[…]
SECOND
Freedom in exchange for breaking the bond of trust.
And you said yes.
[…]
HERO
Believe it.
It’s true.
Boss gave me a hundred reasons why I should tell.
[…]
Boss told me—
he talked up close inside my ear and he said—
He said—
And I thought, I thought—
I don’t know what I thought.
HOMER
When Boss said jump you jumped, that’s all.
You told on me to him.
I told on you to Them.
That makes it even.
OLD MAN
All we’ve got is the trust between us.
(Rest)
I can’t call you son anymore.
LEADER
And we can’t call you Hero.
PENNY
That’s still his name.
THIRD
Maybe we won’t call him anything at all.
The sun rises.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
After Hero and Homer argue about what it means to be free, Homer reveals that Hero didn’t just follow Boss-Master’s orders when he carried out the Homer’s punishment for running away—he first told Boss-Master where he could find the escaped Homer. As Part 1 draws to a close, then, Hero is unmasked as an un-heroic man—note that the conversation ends with a stage direction indicating the rising of the sun, with its light revealing truths hidden during the night. Readers should also note that, while Hero will take a new name for himself in Part 3 and explain it as Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium
Part 3 Quotes
PENNY
What’s that scratching say?
HOMER
It says everything.
PENNY
“Everything.” Is that how you write it? Looks pretty.
HOMER
PENNY
HOMER
Kiss?
PENNY
Homer.
HOMER
No harm in asking.
PENNY
Because you like the sound of no.
HOMER
There’s a yes in that no. Curled up inside somewhere. Kiss.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Back on the farm, in Hero’s absence, Homer and Penny have become lovers. Or, at least, they’ve started having sex; Penny is still devoted to Hero. In this moment, the love-anguished Homer has written Penny’s name in the dirt, thanks to the letters the Runaways have taught him. Penny’s inability to read it offers a quiet but emphatic reminder of the many ways in which enslavers dehumanized and oppressed enslaved people, such as systematically denying them (and legally forbidding them) from receiving any education. But the emphasis in these lines is on the fraught relationship between Homer and Penny. Penny Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas d
HOMER
You’re fearful, I’m brave: no matter. I got one foot you got two: no matter.
(Rest)
There’s big things and then there’s bigger things that small them up, you know? Over where I came from, the sea was so big. But the sky smalled it up. My younger days got smalled up by my years. My one foot gets smalled up by everything. You want to wait, but he’s dead and you’re scared. Going could small that up.
(Rest)
No better time to leave than tonight. And there’s nothing left to do but go.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
With some effort, the Runaways convince Homer to join them in their escape, and he tries, in his turn, to convince Penny to go too. In this passage, he doesn’t try to tempt her with grand visions of freedom. Instead, he simply claims that there are many decisions and actions in life that seem scary in the moment but that become easier once a person begins. Penny, Homer, and the rest have faced privation, difficulty, oppression, and abuse as enslaved people. Homer was betrayed by his friend Hero and lost his foot in the process. And although he bears the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placea
PENNY
The Master is dead, right?
ODYSSEY DOG
Which one?
HOMER
The Boss-Master, the Colonel, you know.
ODYSSEY DOG
When I say my Master of course I’m speaking of Hero. Him and you all have a Master, but his and you all’s Master is not my Master. Although you could say that because the Boss-Master owns Hero who in turn owns me, you could figure that the Boss-Master is in fact my Master. But he is not. Although, the Great Master, the one who sits in the sky, you know, the Great Master is Boss-Master’s Master and Old-Hero’s Master and my Master too, but that Colonel-Boss-Master is not my Master. When the Colonel called me, I would never come.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Soon after Missus receives a letter informing her of Boss-Master’s death, Odd-See comes trotting down the road with news for Penny and Homer. In this passage, Penny and Homer try to confirm the reports about Boss-Master to humorous results, since the talking dog makes it very clear that he has no interest in the man whom the humans call “Master,” only in his master—Hero. On a more serious note, however, readers should note Odd-See’s complete and total lack of respect for Boss-Master. Not only does he disobey the white man, but he also barely seems to register the man’s existence, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non invent
SECOND
I’m scared of what will happen next.
The old story guides me to a dangerous place
A place I head to by homing habit.
Not like the journey I’m on now, right?
THIRD
The place I’m going now is Freedom.
SECOND
But where is Freedom, really?
Will the air smell sweet?
Will the streets be paved with gold?
Will all in Freedomville welcome me with open arms?
Will there be food?
Will there be a bed to lay my Freedom Head?
FIRST
Freedom will swell me, maybe
Maybe it will burst my brains to madness
Maybe it will flood my heart to death
Will I say, at the end of the day,
“God, I wish I’d stayed home?”
SECOND
I’m afraid of what will happen next.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Homer and the Runaways stand on the brink of making their escape, and while they all hunger for the promise of freedom, this passage makes it clear that they nevertheless have fears. In some ways, these aren’t much different from Hero’s. He knows that Boss-Master manipulates and abuses him, yet at least he understands his position in Boss-Master’s world. Boss-Master gives him clothes to wear (the uniform) and food to eat. There’s stability in that, even if it comes at the cost of his dignity. But despite the dangers, the Runaways won’t be deterred. They believe that freedom and self-determination Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beat
Get the entire Father Comes Home from the Wars LitChart as a printable PDF.
"My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." -Graham S.
Penny Character Timeline in Father Comes Home from the Wars
The timeline below shows where the character Penny appears in Father Comes Home from the Wars. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Part 1
...shoes. Gleefully, Second prophecies that Leader will have frostbitten toes come winter. No one else—not Penny (Hero’s lady) or Old Man (Hero’s father) has yet placed a bet. Third Less Desirable...
(full context)
...everyone awake and waiting for him. He asks about Odd-See, and Old Man replies that Penny went to find the dog.
(full context)
...freedom of choice Boss-Master allegedly gives Hero is meaningless. In contrast, the Old Man and Penny have decided to give Hero real freedom by keeping their opinions to themselves.
(full context)
...number. Then he pretends to be Boss-Master, granting Hero his freedom on their triumphant return. Penny approaches while Hero prances around in his finery. They embrace. Then, she asks why he’s...
(full context)
...to learn that Hero woke up intent on staying. He thinks that if Hero promised Penny to stay, he should stay. Hero protests that words mumbled while half-asleep don’t carry that...
(full context)
Penny sees through Old Man’s words. She understands immediately that Boss-Master turned Hero’s head with a...
(full context)
...him from going, then Boss-Master might punish the others less severely. Hero agrees and—much to Penny’s surprise—declares it “fair” for the others to cut off his foot. Old Man and Penny...
(full context)
...Hero’s hands. Hero hesitates. Homer isn’t surprised; he knows Hero is an uncertain man. While Penny tries to take the knife from Hero’s hand to do the deed herself, the others...
(full context)
Penny, Third Less Desirable, Leader Less Desirable, Second Less Desirable, and Fourth Less Desirable try to...
(full context)
...that Homer’s story is a lie. But Hero acknowledges that he did betray his friend. Penny confirms the story, which Hero told her in confidence back when it happened. Homer feels...
(full context)
...they can earn a coin for waving goodbye to Boss-Master—or a beating for their absence. Penny promises Hero that she’ll wait for him to return. Only Old Man remains rooted to...
(full context)
Part 3
...First Runaway, Second Runaway, and Third Runaway hope to convince him, though they’ve all witnessed Penny’s terrible nightmares about Hero and seen how considerately Homer cares for her. If she’s unwilling...
(full context)
First Runaway, Second Runaway, and Third Runaway ask Homer what he thinks Penny’s dreams about Hero mean. Homer knows the dreams mean Hero is close, but he’s not...
(full context)
Then, Penny appears on the road. She notices the word in the dirt but can’t read it;...
(full context)
...just received a letter informing her of catastrophe. Some of it didn’t make sense to Penny—something about a “Proclamation” and “freedom,” but she clearly heard Missus say that Boss-Master is dead....
(full context)
First Runaway, Second Runaway, and Third Runaway can almost see the lines tying Penny to Hero breaking. And indeed, when her kiss with Homer is over, she announces that...
(full context)
But then, Penny catches sight of someone—or something—coming down the road. It’s Odd-See, Hero’s dog, joyfully returning home....
(full context)
Finally, Odd-See agrees to tell Penny how Hero died. Much to her frustration, Odd-See begins his account on the day Hero...
(full context)
...alongside and Odd-See at Old-Hero’s heels, Old-Hero got shot. He fell to the ground, bleeding. Penny shrieks with grief. But Odd-See quickly reassures her that Old-Hero is alive; he’s bringing Boss-Master’s...
(full context)
After Penny leaves, Homer frets over how slowly the sky darkens. If night had fallen earlier, he...
(full context)
...made for displaying shoes in a shop window. He has a silver-tipped gardening spade for Penny to use in her garden, if she promises to plant flowers there and not just...
(full context)
But before Ulysses reads the paper, he has one last piece of important news for Penny. He brought something back for himself, too: a wife named Alberta, who will be coming...
(full context)
Gathering her dignity, Penny announces that she’ll go make sure the house is ready for Ulysses and his new...
(full context)
Meanwhile, Ulysses confers with Odd-See. He’s upset about the intimate embrace Penny and Homer shared. Odd-See points out that even if Penny was unfaithful, it shouldn’t matter;...
(full context)
...see if he wants to run away with them, Ulysses confronts him about sleeping with Penny. Homer replies in much the same way Odd-See did, pointing out that Ulysses is in...
(full context)
...it will be. In response, Ulysses attacks Homer with a knife, nearly killing him before Penny reappears and puts a stop to the violence. After this last betrayal—this final evidence that...
(full context)
