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Justine Cleary
Dane Cleary grows up gentle, graceful, and deeply spiritual, unlike anyone else in his family. As Meggie’s son, he lives on Drogheda alongside his older sister Justine, with whom he forms a strong and protective bond. From childhood, Dane shows a natural compassion and physical beauty that sets him apart. Although his legal father is Luke O’Neill, Dane is actually Father Ralph de Bricassart’s son, having come from Ralph and Maggie’s brief affair. Ralph doesn’t learn that he is Dane’s father until after Dane’s death. As he matures, Dane turns away from romantic or physical life, feeling drawn to religious devotion instead. He commits to the Catholic Church and travels to Rome to study under Ralph, unaware of their true relationship. Dane eventually becomes a priest, believing that only full sacrifice can bring him closer to God. While vacationing in Greece, he saves two women from drowning but dies alone of a heart attack. His death devastates the entire family.
Dane Cleary Quotes in The Thorn Birds
The The Thorn Birds quotes below are all either spoken by Dane Cleary or refer to Dane Cleary . 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:
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Chapter 12 Quotes
The grizzling scrap of humanity responsible for all this lay in a wicker bassinet by the far wall, not a bit appreciative of their attention as they stood around her and peered down. She yelled her resentment, and kept on yelling. In the end the nurse lifted her, bassinet and all, and put her in the room designated as her nursery.
“There’s certainly nothing wrong with her lungs.” Archbishop Ralph smiled, sitting on the edge of the bed and taking Meggie’s pale hand.
“I don’t think she likes life much,” Meggie said with an answering smile. How much older he looked! As fit and supple as ever, but immeasurably older. She turned her head to Anne and Luddie, and held out her other.
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Chapter 15 Quotes
From the moment she set eyes on him, Justine adored her baby brother. Nothing was too good for Dane, nothing too much trouble to fetch or present in his honor. Once he began to walk she never left his side, for which Meggie was very grateful, worrying that Mrs. Smith and the maids were getting too old to keep a satisfactorily sharp eye on a small boy. On one of her rare Sundays off Meggie took her daughter onto her lap and spoke to her seriously about looking after Dane.
“I can’t be here at the homestead to look after him myself,” she said, “so it all depends on you, Justine. He’s your baby brother and you must always watch out for him, make sure he doesn’t get into danger or trouble.”
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Chapter 16 Quotes
Fee laughed. It came out as a snort, but it was a genuine laugh. Grown pallid with age and encroaching cataracts, her eyes rested on Meggie’s startled face, grim and ironic. “Do you take me for a fool, Meggie? I don’t mean Luke O’Neill. I mean Dane is the living image of Ralph de Bricassart.”
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Chapter 17 Quotes
“I’m going to be a priest,” said Dane. “I’m going to enter His service completely, offer everything I have and am to Him, as His priest. Poverty, chastity and obedience. He demands no less than all from His chosen servants. It won’t be easy, but I’m going to do it.”
The look in her eyes! As if he had killed her, ground her into the dust beneath his foot. That he should have to suffer this he hadn’t known, dreaming only of her pride in him, her pleasure at giving her son to God. They said she’d be thrilled, uplifted, completely in accord. Instead she was staring at him as if the prospect of his priesthood was her death sentence.
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Chapter 18 Quotes
Dane’s eyes, yet not Dane’s eyes. Looking at her; bewildered, full of pain, helpless.
“I have no son,” he said, “but among the many, many things I learned from yours was that no matter how hard it is, my first and only allegiance is to Almighty God.”
“Dane was your son too,” said Meggie.
He stared at her blankly. “What?”
“I said, Dane was your son too. When I left Matlock Island I was pregnant. Dane was yours, not Luke O’Neill’s.”
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Dane Cleary Character Timeline in The Thorn Birds
The timeline below shows where the character Dane Cleary appears in The Thorn Birds. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 14
On October 1, Meggie gives birth to a son she names Dane. The labor is quick and relatively painless, and unlike with Justine, she is able to...
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Chapter 15
...much a part of the war effort as any uniformed service. She is grateful that Dane is still years away from being touched by war.
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...children, but never complains. She convinces herself it is selfish to wish to be with Dane and Justine when her work is needed for the war effort. Meanwhile, Justine and Dane...
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Jims and Patsy ride the paddocks together, rediscovering the peace they once knew. They take Dane along on their rides, laughing and roughhousing with him, easing the pain of years lost...
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Chapter 16
On the veranda, Meggie and Fiona sit together watching Justine and Dane at play. The two children could not be more different: Justine is fierce, freckled, and...
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...generous amounts of money to Drogheda. However, Meggie has not seen him since they conceived Dane.
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...seeking anonymity. When he arrives, the property looks unchanged. The first person he encounters is Dane, who is playing outside near some trees. Ralph is struck immediately by the boy’s beauty,...
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Chapter 17
Meanwhile, Meggie and Dane lie sunbathing near the pond on Drogheda, where Meggie muses on her aging body and...
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Dane tells Meggie he has decided to become a priest, believing that the only way to...
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Dane continues, saying he must give up his life as a man to show his absolute...
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...blames for undoing everything women strive to protect. She calls God her enemy and sees Dane’s decision as a divine punishment for her own past, though she does not say so...
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...big house and joins Fiona and Anne Mueller in the drawing room, where she relates Dane’s decision. Anne and Fiona try to comfort her, but Meggie remains convinced that she is...
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Meggie resolves to send Dane to Ralph without ever revealing the truth. Anne and Fiona both ask whether Ralph knows...
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Justine cannot understand Dane’s rejection of sensual and emotional experience, especially given his physical beauty. She thinks about on...
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Some time later, Justine arrives in Rome and joins Dane, who has arranged a comfortable place for her to stay. They plan to travel together...
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...is playful but edged with mutual curiosity. When Cardinal Vittorio suggests they pretend Ralph is Dane’s uncle to make Vatican social appearances easier, Justine inadvertently reveals that Ralph is not a...
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Days later, Justine grows restless in Rome, impatient with Dane’s monastic life and her own purposelessness in the city. She complains that she has become...
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...by her resilience. She explains that she and Meggie never connected emotionally, and she envies Dane’s bond with their mother.
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Chapter 18
...trick of the mind. Rome and London feel no farther than Sydney, and Justine and Dane never really stop being the children who go off to boarding school. Even though they...
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...visits, letters arrive. They vary depending on the sender. Contrary to what one might expect, Dane forgets to post half the letters he writes, so they often arrive in messy bundles....
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In one letter, Justine casually mentions that Rainer has just flown into London after seeing Dane in Rome. Rainer, she admits, is a major reason why she always stops in Rome...
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Ultimately, Dane spends eight years in Rome studying for the priesthood, and though it seems endless at...
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...children. This time, the visit will be theirs. They will fly to Rome to see Dane become a priest. Meggie sits on the veranda one day with Anne Mueller, watching birds...
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...to marry anyone else. Anne says the Clearys are simply not a passionate family—not even Dane or Justine. She does leave room for one possibility: maybe Justine will marry Rainer. She...
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...joined later by Justine, who flies in from London. The plane lands just before dawn. Dane is waiting for them at the airport, wearing his black soutane with the scarlet sash...
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Dane guides them through the streets of Rome, past fountains and churches, pointing out landmarks in...
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...ceremony unfolds with solemn grandeur: chants, incense, Latin prayers, hands placed on bowed heads. When Dane lies prostrate before the altar, Meggie grips Justine’s hand so tightly her knuckles whiten. Justine...
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Afterward, crowds gather around the new priests. Justine watches Dane from a distance and thinks he looks complete—untouchable, even. She cannot imagine ever reaching him...
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That night, they celebrate. The Clearys, Ralph, and some of Dane’s friends gather for dinner in a private room of a restaurant overlooking the Tiber. Toasts...
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In the days that follow, Justine tries to pull Dane aside for a proper conversation, but it never quite happens. They visit a few churches,...
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...boards a plane home, he takes with him a restlessness he cannot shake. Something about Dane’s ordination has stirred it.
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Meanwhile, Justine decides not to go to Greece with Dane, realizing she needs to figure out her relationship with Rainer instead. Although Dane is sad...
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Meanwhile, Dane drives his Lagonda north through Italy, lingering in cities like Trieste before continuing through Yugoslavia...
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One day, Dane swims out from his favorite beach, even though two Englishmen warn him of strong currents....
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The two Englishmen notice Dane’s absence too late. A rescue helicopter recovers his body several hours later, finding him floating...
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Australia House in London contacts Justine with the news of Dane’s death. Shocked and devastated, Justine struggles to comprehend the loss. She contacts Meggie directly, determined...
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After days of agonizing silence, Justine receives confirmation: Dane has been buried in an unknown location in Crete. Meggie decides to fly to Rome...
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During their confrontation, Meggie finally tells Ralph the truth: Dane was his son. Ralph refuses to believe it at first, but Meggie swears on everything...
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Ralph charters a private plane, and together with Meggie and Justine, he brings Dane’s body home to Drogheda. Ralph officiates the funeral Mass, mourning not only as a priest...
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Chapter 19
...around eventually. But his mood changes instantly when he sees the news of Ralph’s and Dane’s deaths. Within minutes, he is driving toward the Vatican, thinking of the burden Vittorio now...
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...realizes the stage offers her the only outlet she has left. Meanwhile, Justine feels that Dane’s death has hollowed out her world. Her grief deepens every time she still thinks of...
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Justine’s guilt grows alongside her sorrow. She sees herself as the cause of Dane’s death—not because of anything she did directly, but because she chose to stay behind with...
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...to understand why. When she mentions Justine, he says he has not seen her since Dane’s death. Meggie admits she has not either. She confides that Justine is the only young...
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...city. He believes she truly loves Meggie and is punishing herself for choosing him over Dane. He urges Meggie to convince Justine to reclaim her life—not one tied to Drogheda, but...
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...to suspect he has returned not out of love, but to fulfill a promise to Dane. In a moment of frustration and sorrow, she writes to Meggie announcing that she will...
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