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Chapter 22
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Something Wicked This Way Comes, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Good vs. Evil
Age, Time, and Acceptance
Love and Happiness
Fear, the Supernatural, and the Unknown
Summary
Analysis
Robert runs down the street with Will and Jim close behind. Will knows that Jim won’t be of any help if they catch the imposter nephew. “Jim isn’t running after nephews. He is running toward free rides.” As Robert runs toward the carnival, he disappears behind a tent and the old carousel jerks into action, this time in forward motion. Jim stops and stares at the ride.
Jim isn’t yet interested in stopping or destroying the threat of evil because he still wants to ride the carousel and instantly become a man. The carousel begins to move in a forward motion to further tempt Jim to board it and ride.
Themes
Will watches as Jim readies himself to jump on the carousel. “Jim!” cries Will. “No!” Will runs and tackles him. The boys struggle to their feet and Will slaps Jim hard across the face. “Jim, he’ll kill us!” Will yells. “Not me, no!” Jim answers. Will feels a “sting of electricity” and steps back, hitting a switch on the control box. Lightning pierces the sky and merry-go-round begins moving faster. Will sees the evil Robert fly by, “cursing” and “spitting” at them.
Jim’s comment that Cooger and Dark won’t kill him implies that he knows they will kill Will, yet this isn’t enough to keep him away. Will’s “sting of electricity,” which foretells Robert’s upcoming transformation into Mr. Electrico, also suggests that Will is deeply hurt by Jim’s comment. Will loves Jim and values his life and friendship, but Jim’s willingness to sacrifice Will for his own desire to be older suggests that Jim feels differently.
Themes
Bolts of electricity fly from the control box of the carousel and Jim and Will watch as Robert continues to zip by, aging with each turn. Lights flicker in the carnival tents and the carousel picks up speed. “In a final vomit,” the control box blows clean apart and the merry-go-round grinds to a halt. “How many times,” wonders Will, “did it go around?” It was too fast to count, but it must have been well over ninety. Slowly the boys approach the ride and find Mr. Cooger, aged to over one hundred, “cold as an albino frog.” After Will throws up over the side of the merry-go-round, the boys run away fast down the empty midway.
Will and Jim believe that they have killed Mr. Cooger, and they want to put as much distance between themselves and the carnival as possible. Will is deeply affected by what he has witnessed and the realization that he has potentially been a party to murder, and it makes him physically ill.
Themes
