57 pages • 1 hour read

A Great Reckoning

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2016

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Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-9

Chapters 10-21

Chapters 22-31

Chapters 32-43

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

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Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

The Map of Three Pines

The map of Three Pines, eventually revealed to have been created by Marie Valois working under the pseudonym Antony Turcotte, is an important symbol in the novel. The map symbolizes parental love and care. Charpentier guesses that the map “was made for that young soldier […]. To remind him of home [and] to bring him home” (195), and this is theory is later confirmed when Gamache concludes that “she made them each a map, to take with them […]. So they could find their way home, and then she made another, so they could find her” (383). The map also symbolizes how love can endure even after great loss or pain; Valois lost all of her sons on the same day, resulting in grief so great that some claim they “could still hear her wail, years later” (382), yet she still saved the orienteering map and constructed an elaborate exercise to guide her sons to her new home if they ever came looking for her.

This symbolism of enduring parental love even in the face of loss reflects how Gamache continues to feel cherished and guided by his parents, even though he lost them decades ago. The map also reflects how Gamache aspires to guide the young cadets toward integrity and justice, similarly to how Marie Valois tried to guide her sons home. By giving them the map and introducing them to the community of Three Pines, Gamache provides directions to what a different and more hopeful future could look like for them.

Gracie

Gracie is an unattractive puppy adopted by Reine-Marie and Gamache. She symbolizes their desire to care for and nurture those who need it most; when Gamache first learns that his wife selected the runt of the litter, he admits that “he’d have done the same thing” (153), showing the alignment of their values. Gracie’s unappealing appearance, with “a long thin tail […] and patches of black hair” (144), likens her to Amelia, whom many people find unattractive due to her tattoos and multiple piercings. The tenderness that Reine-Marie and Gamache show to Gracie, the runt whom no one else wants, is explicitly compared to how Gamache focuses on the cadets who need him the most, with Gélinas complaining that “your wife had the pick of the litter and she chose the runt. You did the same thing. You picked the runts. […] Invited them into your home” (230). Gracie’s symbolism is also deepened by her name, which alludes to the Christian theological concept of grace: showing compassion and care to those who may not deserve it but who are met with love, nonetheless.

Handkerchief

When Gamache and Brébeuf have their final conversation in Brébeuf’s rooms at the academy, Gamache is stunned to see that Brébeuf has a bloodstained handkerchief framed and hanging over the door. The handkerchief had long ago been “a Christmas gift from Armand’s mother to his father” (357), which she had lovingly hand-embroidered. After their deaths, the handkerchief became Gamache’s most beloved possession, but when Brébeuf hurt himself, Gamache did not hesitate to use the handkerchief to staunch the blood and add his own blood to the fabric. The handkerchief symbolizes the deep and enduring bond between the two men, forged to the extent that it is “as though Brébeuf had coiled himself around Armand’s DNA” (356). Especially since Gamache’s parents passed away when he was young, Brébeuf is almost his most enduring life-long relationship. The handkerchief also symbolizes how the loyalty between them is so deep that it can lead to bloodshed, just like the blood imprinted on the fabric: Brébeuf is so devoted to Gamache that he is willing to kill on his behalf.