Previous
Symbols
One of the ghosts in the Valley of the Shadow of Life carries a small lizard with him; the lizard whispers in his ear, preventing him from entering Heaven. As the book makes clear, the lizard is the embodiment of lust: a dangerous, seductive force that can distract human beings from God.
The Lizard Quotes in The Great Divorce
The The Great Divorce quotes below all refer to the symbol of The Lizard. 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:
).
Chapter 11
Quotes
Ye must ask, if the risen body even of appetite is as grand a horse as ye saw, what would the risen body of maternal love or friendship be?
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Great Divorce LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Lizard Symbol Timeline in The Great Divorce
The timeline below shows where the symbol The Lizard appears in The Great Divorce. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 11
...another ghost, who’s carrying something on his shoulder. The ghost is carrying a small hissing lizard, and keeps yelling for the lizard to be quiet. As the lizard continues to whisper...
(full context)
...the angel that he won’t be able to go to the mountains while carrying the lizard. He’s told his lizard to keep quiet, but unfortunately, the lizard keeps making noise. The...
(full context)
After the lizard is dead, the ghost begins to change. He becomes solider and bigger, until he’s a...
(full context)
MacDonald explains to the Narrator that the lizard was lust—a creature who has no home in the mountains. With the ghost’s assent, the...
(full context)
...these feelings can be transformed into new, more beautiful feelings—just as the angel transformed the lizard into a beautiful horse. If Pam would temporarily give up her feelings for her son,...
(full context)
