The Little Boy Character Analysis in Dawn

The little boy is the ghost of Elisha’s younger self as he was before the war began. He appears the night before Dawson’s execution and is the only one of the ghosts who directly answers Elisha’s questions. He explains to Elisha that the ghosts must witness the execution because they are part of everything he does, though they will not judge him.

The Little Boy Quotes in Dawn

The Dawn quotes below are all either spoken by The Little Boy or refer to The Little Boy. 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:

).

"But it's all quite simple," he exclaimed. "We are here to be present at the execution. We want to see you carry it out. We want to see you turn into a murderer. That's natural enough, isn't it?" […]

I was beginning to understand. An act so absolute as that of killing involves not only the killer but, as well, those who have formed him. In murdering a man I was making them murderers.

Related Characters: Elisha (speaker), The Little Boy (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 46

Explanation and Analysis:

I fired. When he pronounced my name he was already dead; the bullet had gone through his heart. A dead man, whose lips were still warm, had pronounced my name: Elisha.

[…] That's it, I said to myself. It's done. I've killed. I've killed Elisha. The ghosts began to leave the cell, taking John Dawson with them. The little boy walked at his side as if to guide him. I seemed to hear my mother say: "Poor boy! Poor boy!"

Related Characters: Elisha (speaker), John Dawson, The Little Boy, Elisha’s Mother

Page Number and Citation: 80

Explanation and Analysis:

The Little Boy Quotes in Dawn

The Dawn quotes below are all either spoken by The Little Boy or refer to The Little Boy. 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:

).

"But it's all quite simple," he exclaimed. "We are here to be present at the execution. We want to see you carry it out. We want to see you turn into a murderer. That's natural enough, isn't it?" […]

I was beginning to understand. An act so absolute as that of killing involves not only the killer but, as well, those who have formed him. In murdering a man I was making them murderers.

Related Characters: Elisha (speaker), The Little Boy (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 46

Explanation and Analysis:

I fired. When he pronounced my name he was already dead; the bullet had gone through his heart. A dead man, whose lips were still warm, had pronounced my name: Elisha.

[…] That's it, I said to myself. It's done. I've killed. I've killed Elisha. The ghosts began to leave the cell, taking John Dawson with them. The little boy walked at his side as if to guide him. I seemed to hear my mother say: "Poor boy! Poor boy!"

Related Characters: Elisha (speaker), John Dawson, The Little Boy, Elisha’s Mother

Page Number and Citation: 80

Explanation and Analysis: