When you ask your students to list themes they noticed in The Girl Who Drank the Moon, they’ll surely have a lot to say. It’s got all the big ones–good vs. evil, family, loss, etc.
If you’re looking to lead a discussion on theme during your novel study, I’ve got some notes that might come in handy. Here are some themes I jotted down as I read:
Memory
The characters struggle with both the pain of remembering and the consequences of forgetting. Ultimately, the book suggests that it’s better to remember something painful than to forget it, because remembering offers a path forward. Here are some ways this theme comes up:
- Xan cannot remember much about her childhood. She tries not to think about it.
- The madwoman slowly forgets the elements of her identity–her name, her child’s name, her husband’s name.
- Fyrian tries not to think about his mother’s death.
- Antain tries (unsuccessfully) to forget about the Day of Sacrifice.
- Luna cannot remember anything to do with magic.
Most notably, Xan actively rejects and ignores painful memories. She even tries to forget how she’s bound up Luna’s magic:
“The child was never magic, Xan started telling herself. And indeed, the more Xan told herself that it might be true, the more she was able to convince herself that it was true.”
The Girl Who Drank the Moon, Kelly Barnhill
Sacrifice
There are examples of both good and bad sacrifices, forced sacrifice and voluntary sacrifice:
- The elders force a family to sacrifice a child each year.
- Antain sacrifices his status when he steps down as an elder.
- Xan sacrifices her safety and resources by rescuing a baby each year, and especially by caring for Luna.
- Ethyne sacrifices her position with the Sisters of the Star to live an ordinary (and more joyful) life.
- Antain sacrifices his own comfort and safety to search for the witch.
Sorrow
The book vividly depicts the negative aspects of sorrow: the power of sorrow to destroy, obscure, and imprison. But it also demonstrates how rejecting sorrow (by rejecting reality or memory) can actually feed sorrow. Hope, not ignorance, is the antidote to sorrow.
Consequences
Consequence is an especially important theme in Xan’s storyline. Though Xan’s decision to bind up Luna’s magic seems necessary, it is not without negative consequences. Though Xan fed Luna moonlight by accident, it is not without dangerous consequences.
Some other themes would be secrecy, separation, and magic. Have you discussed any of these themes with your students? What other important themes did they come up with?
This is a series for teachers who are reading The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill with their students. You’ll read about focusing your novel study around major literary devices found in the book. If you’re looking for activities to go with the book, you can preview my novel study here.
