Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in News of the World, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fatherhood and Masculinity
American Multiculturalism and Racial Violence
News and Storytelling
Childhood and Innocence
War and Reconstruction
Summary
Analysis
In the Masonic Lodge, Captain Kidd puts on his reading clothes. Then he greets the crowd, listening to their coins falling into his tin can. He starts off with the London Daily News, giving people the chance to escape their daily lives with news that has no bearing on them. Everyone is amazed to listen to information that has made its way to their tiny town from such exotic locales. He reads from the Philadelphia Inquirer about excavations in Turkey and from the Calcutta Times about telegraphs in India. When he looks up briefly, he notices the pale-haired man in the crowd.
While it’s certainly good to be informed on events in other countries, it’s also clear that Captain Kidd is steering away from coverage closer to home because it’s more controversial. Meanwhile, his sighting of the pale-haired man again suggests that he’s being followed.
Themes
Just as the reading ends, Simon hurries into the auditorium and announces that Johanna is gone. He and Doris had dozed off and Johanna has left the wagon with her doll. Tracking her muddy footprints, he and Simon set off along the river in the pouring rain. As Simon apologizes profusely, the Captain grimly reflects that this is a task for a much younger man.
Captain Kidd frequently presents himself as incapable of caring for Johanna. In fact, his new responsibility prevents him from sinking into misanthropic old age and makes him take an interest in life that he’s long been lacking.
Themes
Soon, Captain Kidd see Johanna standing near the water, clutching the doll to her chest. On the other side of the river, a party of Native Americans are riding along the water. She’s calling to them in Kiowa, but they can’t hear. The Captain calls to her, but she continues shouting “for her mother, for her father and her sisters and brothers.”
The raiding party shows the extreme proximity of Native American culture to the Captain’s own society; but the roaring river between them represents the vast gaps between the two cultures and the suffering that results for Johanna, who belongs completely to neither one.
Themes
One of the Native Americans calls out, seemingly in response, but then he lifts a gun and aims it at Johanna, firing a warning shot. Captain Kidd ducks but Johanna simply bends down and places the doll on a rock, facing the opposite side of the river; she sees it as a kind of totem, which will watch over her homeland for her. The Captain grabs her by the dress and runs with her back to the wagon, dragging her “back to her fate.” Back at the wagon Johanna falls asleep, but Captain Kidd stays up late into the night.
Johanna hopes to be rescued and reunited with her Kiowa family, but the young man doesn’t even recognize her as the Native American she thinks she is. Neither Anglo nor Native Americans perceive her as fully belonging to her own culture. Her “fate,” as the Captain describes it, is not to assimilate but to be stuck between the two.
Themes
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In the morning, Captain Kidd and Johanna continue south. Seemingly forgetting the night’s anguish, Johanna sits on the bench and sings to herself. Captain Kidd experiments with speaking a few words in German, the language that Johanna would have spoken with her biological family. Seeming to surprise herself, Johanna understands and responds, saying in broken German that her parents are “todt,” dead. Captain Kidd feels guilty for bringing up such terrible memories. To distract her he teaches her the words for “hand” and “horse.”
Johanna’s understanding of multiple languages indicates her complex cultural identity. By experimenting with different forms of communication, rather than forcing her to adapt to English right away, Captain Kidd demonstrates his willingness to accept these conflicting identities.
Themes
That afternoon, they arrive in the small town of Dallas, which frightens Johanna even more than Spanish Fort. She looks into each shop with “deep apprehension.” Finally, Captain Kidd arrives at a livery stable he knows and hands his horses over to an obviously drunk stable boy. Mrs. Gannet, the stable’s middle-aged but very pretty owner, comes out to greet the Captain. She’s shocked to hear that he’s traveling alone to San Antonio; after all, her own husband was hacked to pieces on a road outside this town. He asks her to watch Johanna for a few hours while he buys newspapers and rents a hall for the night.
Although the novel includes few actual instances of violence, moments like this remind readers of the bloody conflict lurking outside these towns. While white pioneers fall victim to Kiowa raids, Native American tribes lose land and stability to increasing waves of settlers. As much as mixed cultural identities, this persistent violence informs America’s emerging society.
Themes
Mrs. Gannet laughs at Captain Kidd’s weary state and offers to have his laundry sent out and find some new clothes for Johanna. Still in the wagon, Johanna clearly thinks that Captain Kidd is giving her away to this stranger. He puts a hand on her forehead to soothe her and tells her to stay.
Johanna’s frequent fears that she’s about to be traded or sold reflect the instability of her childhood. It’s important that the Captain tries to soothe these fears, rather than dismissing them.
Themes
