Scythe

by

Neal Shusterman

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The antagonist of the novel, Scythe Goddard is a charismatic scythe who wears lavish blue robes encrusted with diamonds. Goddard believes that gleaning should be public and iconic, as this is the only way for non-scythes to remember what it's like to be mortal. He's a cruel man who enjoys killing and is known for conducting mass gleanings with his crew of young scythes: Rand, Chomsky, and Volta. Goddard technically follows the scythes' code of conduct to live simply and own nothing but their rings, robes, and gleaning journals, but gets around these technicalities by accepting "donations" and granting wealthy homeowners immunity in exchange for letting him live in their mansions—though the homeowners have no choice in the matter. Goddard throws lavish parties regularly and hopes to bring scythes around to his way of thinking. After Scythe Faraday self-gleans, Goddard offers to take on both Rowan and Citra's training, but he's only allowed to take Rowan. Volta confides in Rowan that Goddard sees Rowan as a challenge—Faraday was one of Goddard's biggest adversaries and his moral and ethical opposite, so being able to turn Rowan into a soulless killer would be a major victory for him. Goddard is fundamentally corrupt, and after kidnapping Esme, Xenocrates's illegitimate and illegal daughter, he blackmails Xenocrates into trying to get rid of Citra and make sure that Rowan will be the one to become a scythe. Rowan's training with Goddard consists mostly of practicing gleaning on live, paid volunteers, which effectively desensitizes Rowan to the act of killing. This all backfires, however, when Goddard leads his crew and Rowan in a mass gleaning at a Tonist cloister. Though Goddard attempts to make Rowan perform his first gleaning, Rowan brutally kills Goddard instead, insisting that Goddard turned him into the coldhearted, calculating killer capable of doing such a thing.

Scythe Goddard Quotes in Scythe

The Scythe quotes below are all either spoken by Scythe Goddard or refer to Scythe Goddard. 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:
Coming of Age Theme Icon
).
Chapter 5 Quotes

When it was decided that people needed to die in order to ease the tide of population growth, it was also decided that this must be the responsibility of humans. Bridge repair and urban planning could be handled by the Thunderhead, but taking a life was an act of conscience and consciousness. Since it could not be proven that the Thunderhead had either, the Scythedom was born.

Related Characters: Scythe Curie (speaker), Scythe Goddard
Related Symbols: Thunderhead
Page Number: 54
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

The idea that not all scythes were good was something neither Rowan or Citra had ever considered. It was widely accepted that scythes adhered to the highest moral and ethical standards. They were wise in their dealings and fair in their choices. Even the ones who sought celebrity were seen to deserve it. The idea that some scythes might not be as honorable as Scythe Faraday did not sit well with either of his new apprentices.

Related Characters: Citra Terranova, Rowan Damisch, Scythe Goddard, Scythe Faraday / Gerald Van Der Gans
Page Number: 79
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 24 Quotes

"Never lose your humanity," Scythe Faraday had told him, "or you'll be nothing more than a killing machine." He had used the word "killing" rather than "gleaning." Rowan hadn't thought much of it at the time, but now he understood; it stopped being gleaning the moment one became desensitized to the act.

Related Characters: Scythe Faraday / Gerald Van Der Gans (speaker), Rowan Damisch, Scythe Goddard
Page Number: 239
Explanation and Analysis:

"Embrace it, Rowan. Suckle at its transformative breast. You may think gleaning is an acquired taste, but it's not. The thrill of the hunt and the joy of the kill simmers in all of us. Bring it to the surface and then you'll be the kind of scythe this world needs."

Related Characters: Scythe Goddard (speaker), Rowan Damisch
Page Number: 240
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 27 Quotes

"I was headstrong and stupid in my early days. I thought that by gleaning just the right people at just the right time, I could change the world for the better. I believed, in my arrogance, that I had a keen grasp of the big picture that others lack. But of course, I was just as limited as everyone else."

Related Characters: Scythe Curie (speaker), Citra Terranova, Scythe Goddard
Page Number: 273
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 28 Quotes

Tyger left with the other professional party people, with whom he seemed to share much more in common now than with Rowan. Rowan wondered if there was anyone from his old life he could relate to anymore.

Related Characters: Rowan Damisch, Scythe Goddard, Tyger Salazar
Page Number: 311
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 29 Quotes

"But if this really is a scandal in the Scythedom—"

"—then your best possible position would be to achieve scythehood yourself, and fight it from the inside."

Related Characters: Citra Terranova (speaker), Scythe Curie (speaker), Scythe Goddard, Scythe Faraday / Gerald Van Der Gans
Page Number: 319
Explanation and Analysis:
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Scythe Goddard Quotes in Scythe

The Scythe quotes below are all either spoken by Scythe Goddard or refer to Scythe Goddard. 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:
Coming of Age Theme Icon
).
Chapter 5 Quotes

When it was decided that people needed to die in order to ease the tide of population growth, it was also decided that this must be the responsibility of humans. Bridge repair and urban planning could be handled by the Thunderhead, but taking a life was an act of conscience and consciousness. Since it could not be proven that the Thunderhead had either, the Scythedom was born.

Related Characters: Scythe Curie (speaker), Scythe Goddard
Related Symbols: Thunderhead
Page Number: 54
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

The idea that not all scythes were good was something neither Rowan or Citra had ever considered. It was widely accepted that scythes adhered to the highest moral and ethical standards. They were wise in their dealings and fair in their choices. Even the ones who sought celebrity were seen to deserve it. The idea that some scythes might not be as honorable as Scythe Faraday did not sit well with either of his new apprentices.

Related Characters: Citra Terranova, Rowan Damisch, Scythe Goddard, Scythe Faraday / Gerald Van Der Gans
Page Number: 79
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 24 Quotes

"Never lose your humanity," Scythe Faraday had told him, "or you'll be nothing more than a killing machine." He had used the word "killing" rather than "gleaning." Rowan hadn't thought much of it at the time, but now he understood; it stopped being gleaning the moment one became desensitized to the act.

Related Characters: Scythe Faraday / Gerald Van Der Gans (speaker), Rowan Damisch, Scythe Goddard
Page Number: 239
Explanation and Analysis:

"Embrace it, Rowan. Suckle at its transformative breast. You may think gleaning is an acquired taste, but it's not. The thrill of the hunt and the joy of the kill simmers in all of us. Bring it to the surface and then you'll be the kind of scythe this world needs."

Related Characters: Scythe Goddard (speaker), Rowan Damisch
Page Number: 240
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 27 Quotes

"I was headstrong and stupid in my early days. I thought that by gleaning just the right people at just the right time, I could change the world for the better. I believed, in my arrogance, that I had a keen grasp of the big picture that others lack. But of course, I was just as limited as everyone else."

Related Characters: Scythe Curie (speaker), Citra Terranova, Scythe Goddard
Page Number: 273
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 28 Quotes

Tyger left with the other professional party people, with whom he seemed to share much more in common now than with Rowan. Rowan wondered if there was anyone from his old life he could relate to anymore.

Related Characters: Rowan Damisch, Scythe Goddard, Tyger Salazar
Page Number: 311
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 29 Quotes

"But if this really is a scandal in the Scythedom—"

"—then your best possible position would be to achieve scythehood yourself, and fight it from the inside."

Related Characters: Citra Terranova (speaker), Scythe Curie (speaker), Scythe Goddard, Scythe Faraday / Gerald Van Der Gans
Page Number: 319
Explanation and Analysis: