Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Noughts and Crosses, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Racism, Division, and Tragedy
Awareness and Privilege
Love, Lust, Power, and Violence
Friendship
Youth, Innocence, and Growing Up
Family
Summary
Analysis
Jack throws down his playing cards and says he doesn’t want to play anymore. Callum teases him, but he knows Jack is having a hard time. Jack has been the one to update Callum about the outside world. Sephy has said publicly that Callum didn’t rape her, and some of the national papers are questioning whether Callum should die. A psychiatrist is insisting that Sephy suffers from Kidnapper Empathy Syndrome, but that’s nonsense. In any case, no judge is going to overturn the ruling that Callum is guilty, and the reason is simple: Callum is a nought who had sex with a Cross, and now Sephy is pregnant.
Under these difficult circumstances, Sephy has finally found the courage to stand up and speak up about how unfairly society treats noughts—it’s the only way she’ll save the man she loves. But Callum insists that it’s too late for Sephy to do much good. Most people in their society don’t believe noughts and Crosses can be in love, so Callum is going to pay the price—presumably his life—because he and Sephy fell in love.
Themes
Now, it’s Callum’s last day alive. Jack says he has 10 more minutes. After a moment of silence, Callum asks if Jack has ever thought of how life would be if their positions were reversed, and white people were in charge. Jack hasn’t thought about it, but Callum says he has: it’d be a world with no discrimination, prejudice, or inequality. The justice system would be fair, and people would all get a good education. Jack wryly suggests that no matter who’s in charge, people always mess up. Callum insists that someday, things will be better. Just not for him.
In Callum’s imagination, life with noughts in charge would be idyllic, because they wouldn’t replicate the unjust systems that Crosses have set up. In this passage more than anywhere else, the novel encourages readers to consider Jack and Callum’s thoughts—and since the reader’s world features white people in charge and harmful racism against Black people, it suggests that Jack is right. People will inevitably subjugate each other, it will just look different depending on who’s in power.
Themes
Jack softly says that Sephy tried to get in to see Callum multiple times, but higher ups don’t want Callum having any visitors. Then, Callum asks Jack for a favor that might get him in trouble: delivering a letter to Sephy. Jack agrees and pockets the letter. Callum sits on his bed. There are so many things he wants to do, like see Mum and apologize. All her children are dead or running from the police, and she lost Dad, too. What’s Jude up to these days? Is he safe, and is he taking down Andrew Dorn? How does Sephy feel about Callum? Is she still pregnant? Callum will never be able to talk to her again.
As Callum stares down his death, he looks back on his relationships with his family. He understands that by now, his family is totally shattered—Mum no doubt knows that Callum is about to be hanged, and Jude is still hopefully alive and working for the LM. Callum also has to think about his chosen family with Sephy, which is breaking apart before he and Sephy could even build a life together. The novel’s racist society has destroyed both of these families entirely.
Themes
Just then, Callum hears the security door open. Governor Giustini comes to the doorway of Callum’s cell and asks if he has any last requests. Callum says he just wants to get it over with. He tells himself to be calm and collected as Jack, tears in his eyes, gently handcuffs him. Callum decides he has to stay hopeful until the very end as he follows Giustini out, Jack right by his side. Other prisoners wish Callum luck.
Callum no doubt remembers that Dad’s execution was stayed at the last moment—he could be hopeful that he might actually survive the ordeal. What exactly he’s hopeful for remains ambiguous, however. It’s a sign of how genuine Jack and Callum’s friendship is that Jack is crying. Jack recognizes Callum’s humanity, and he doesn’t want to see his friend hang.
Themes
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Callum steps out the door into the bright sunlight. Jack leads Callum up the scaffold stairs and asks for his forgiveness. Callum says Jack hasn’t done anything—and Jack says Callum hasn’t, either. Callum looks at the crowd, hoping to see Sephy. But Jack says he has to put a hood over Callum’s head. Callum doesn’t want the hood—how will he see Sephy?—but once the hood is on, Callum realizes he can cry without anyone seeing. Then, as someone pulls the noose around Callum’s neck, Callum hears Sephy shouting that she loves him. He mentally thanks God and shouts back that he loves Sephy too.
The rules surrounding executions mean that Callum can’t have his actual last wish: to see Sephy one more time. But the reveal that Sephy is present to watch the execution helps Callum feel loved and supported in his last moments. Broadly speaking, Callum’s execution suggests that for noughts, it’s something of a privilege to get to grow up at all. Callum may be innocent, but he’s still denied the opportunity to live as an adult.
Themes
