Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Nickel Boys, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Trauma and Repression
Unity, Support, and Hope
History, Secrecy, and Racism
Civil Rights, Dignity, and Sacrifice
Power, Fear, and Upward Mobility
Summary
Analysis
At one point during Elwood’s spring term at Nickel Academy, Director Hardee learns through a whisper-network of board members that the state will be sending inspectors to the school. Nickel has frequently attracted the state’s attention because of its nefarious ways, but this is just a routine inspection. Nevertheless, Hardee halts all classes on campus two days before so that the students and staff can focus on repairing the grounds. In this atmosphere, everyone sets to work replacing squeaky floorboards, installing a new boiler, working on the busted plumbing, and generally fixing everything that has slipped into disrepair. During this time, Turner and Elwood continue their Community Service. As they work cleaning out a powerful politician’s basement in Eleanor, Elwood tells Turner his plan to overthrow Nickel Academy.
Whitehead has already established that Nickel Academy operates outside the law, largely making up its own rules for itself and disregarding what the government tells it to do. For this reason, a state inspection is a very serious affair, since its purpose is to find out whether or not the institution is operating the way it should. In other words, the inspection might actually hold Nickel accountable for its many misdeeds. However, powerful board members hear about the inspection beforehand, rendering the entire ordeal useless. That Nickel Academy is capable of avoiding true scrutiny is yet another indication that the school manipulates its power so that it can avoid taking responsibility for its unethical practices.
Themes
Elwood no longer thinks about Dr. King’s ideas as mere vague concepts, since they now apply directly to his life. Thinking specifically about Dr. King’s notion that mistreatment only strengthens a person’s character, Elwood decides to adopt an immense “capacity to suffer,” one that prevents him from fearing punishment. With this in mind, he tells Turner his plan to slip a letter to the government inspectors when they visit Nickel the following day. He tells his friend about the list he’s been keeping of the people and stores to whom Nickel has been selling government-issued supplies. Furious, Turner asks why Elwood has been doing this, warning him that Spencer will kill him if he finds out what he’s planning to do.
The lessons Elwood has learned from Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement finally brings themselves to bear on Nickel Academy, as Elwood draws on his belief that it’s worth standing up for what he believes in, even if doing so will put him in danger. Fear of punishment is no longer enough to keep him from acting on what he thinks is right. Turner, on the other hand, doesn’t have such strong convictions, which is why he curses Elwood for wanting to do such a courageous thing—after all, delivering a letter to the inspectors will put both boys in danger, since they work on the Community Service team together.
Themes
Elwood insists that it’s a mistake to remain obedient, telling Turner that he can’t simply navigate Nickel Academy like an “obstacle course.” According to Elwood, it’s necessary to confront adversity head-on. Still, though, Turner refuses to participate in the plan, leaving Elwood to face the task on his own.
Once again, Turner acts as a staunch individualist, refusing to do anything that might put him in danger. In contrast, Elwood is willing to jeopardize his own life in order to do what he thinks is right and perhaps create meaningful change. Seeing himself as somebody who stands up for himself and what he believes in, Elwood makes peace with the idea of possibly sacrificing himself for a greater good.
Themes
On the day of the inspection, Elwood stuffs his letter into his pocket. On this particular day, Elwood and Turner stay on campus because Hardee doesn’t want the inspectors to know that they usually leave the grounds. Consequently, they work on refurbishing the football bleachers, a job Hardee has intentionally put off because he wants the inspectors to think the students often take on such difficult projects. As Elwood works, he sees the three white inspectors approaching. He’s not sure how to slip them the letter, but he decides which one he wants to give it to if he has the chance. At one point, the inspectors walk a mere two yards from him, but he doesn’t have a good opportunity to address them.
Elwood’s convictions are quite strong, but this doesn’t mean he doesn’t feel fear. After all, it’s quite likely that Spencer will kill him if he catches him trying to give the inspectors a letter, and though it’s true that Elwood is determined to stand up for himself, it’s also understandable that he doesn’t want to hand the letter to the inspectors in such a public context. At the same time, though, his failure to follow through suggests that Nickel’s culture of fear still has an effect on him, ultimately keeping him from advocating for himself despite his resolve.
Themes
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At lunch, Elwood curses himself for failing to deliver the letter, but he resolves to try it again, this time deciding to hand it to the inspectors in a more secluded area. He knows that he’s risking a lot to do this, but he doesn’t let that stop him. After all, he’s already survived one beating, so he might as well take his chances to bring about change. After lunch, Elwood and the other boys set out once again for the football bleachers, but Harper stops Elwood and tells him to go deliver a message to another teacher, saying that the inspectors won’t be visiting him that day. Consequently, Harper wants Elwood to tell the teacher that he can relax.
Elwood regains his courage when he reflects upon the fact that he has already survived one of Spencer’s beatings. If he gets caught, he realizes, his punishment will belong to a long history of oppressive violence. This thought puts his predicament into a wider context, helping him see that delivering the letter (and thereby possibly shutting down Nickel) might outweigh his punishment, even if that punishment is severe. Simply put, he realizes that he is fighting for a greater good, a cause for which he’s willing to risk his life.
Themes
Knowing that delivering Harper’s message will make it impossible for him to slip the letter to the inspectors before they leave, Elwood asks Harper if he can stay. Hearing Elwood call him by his first name, Harper corrects him, saying: “Mr. Harper, sir.” Elwood knows that this formality is necessary on campus, even if he never has to talk to Harper like this when they’re doing Community Service. Going on, Harper tells him to do as he was told, promising that everything will return to normal after the inspectors leave. After Harper leaves, Elwood stands paralyzed and defeated until he hears a voice behind him. “I’ll do it,” Turner says, stepping forward and saying, “I’ll get it to them, fuck it.”
Although Harper acts as if he’s Elwood’s equal when they’re in the Community Service van, he emphasizes his authority when they’re on campus. This is perhaps simply because he doesn’t want other staff members to hear him speaking casually with a student, but it’s worth pointing out that he still forces Elwood to do what he says—an indication that he’s more invested in his authority than he has previously led Elwood to believe. On another note, Turner’s willingness to deliver the note marks the first time throughout the novel that he abandons his individualistic mindset in order to do something for someone else.
Themes
After giving Turner the letter, Elwood delivers Harper’s message, taking the long way back to the dorms on his return because he’s nervous about what might have happened in his absence. Just before dinner, Turner leads him to his secret hiding place in the warehouse and tells him that he put the letter in a copy of the school newspaper and gave it to the inspectors before they left. That night, everything goes along like normal—authorities don’t come zooming onto the premises. But in the middle of the night, Spencer and Hennepin appear and take Elwood to the White House.
At first, it seems as if Elwood and Turner may have gotten away with their plan to overthrow Nickel. That night, though, Elwood sees once again that there’s virtually nothing he can do to stand up for himself. No matter what, it seems, Nickel Academy will get the best of him, making it impossible for him to advocate for his or his peers’ rights. And yet, Elwood has known all along that this might happen if he went through with his plan. In this sense, then, he has willingly sacrificed himself for a greater good.
Themes
