Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in I Am the Messenger, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Circumstance vs. Choice
Heroism, Sainthood, and Ordinariness
Purpose, Success, and Meaning
Hope, Caring, and Beauty
Summary
Analysis
Marie thanks Ed for the lights, and Ed replies that the family deserved to have new lights. Lua tells Ed that the family has lived in that house for almost a year, but no one in the neighborhood has done anything to help them. Lua does not resent the neighbors, because he knows they have their own troubles. He just wonders why Ed chose to help their family. Ed says he doesn’t understand the reasons why himself.
Lua’s words reveal how outside factors, such as poverty and race (given that the Tatupu family are the only characters identified as not white in the novel) can stop individuals from caring for others. However, if an individual like Ed intentionally tries to help another person, they can overcome those differences to forge a powerful bond.
Themes
Marie gives Ed a Christmas card made by all the children. The family settles down to watch TV together and Ed takes the opportunity to slip out. Before he goes, Lua give Ed a special stone for good luck. Then he asks Ed if he really did used to live in their house. Ed confesses that he didn’t, and Lua accepts this fact.
Lua and Ed’s acceptance of the lie shows how both characters believe that an otherwise immoral act such as lying is justified as long as one commits such an act in order to help others. This further emphasizes that helping others sometimes requires unconventional tactics.
Themes
