The White Mountians Theme: Freedom

"The bitter thing was all the spirit, all the gallantry, was wasted. For even more than inferiors, they accepted and looked forward to being Capped. It was a part of becoming a knight, or of turning from a girl to lady. Thinking of this, I saw how good things could be meaningless in isolation. What value did courage have, without a free and challenging mind to direct it?" (p. 111)

Freedom. Liberty. Choice. Independence. Those are powerful words. They are to be used sparingly and only with purpose. Will understands deeply what the true meaning of freedom is. Who needs freedom? Whites, Blacks, men, women, the educated and uneducated, the minorities, the majorities, the Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Atheist, the individual, the all, the rich, and the poor, the good, and the bad. No greater gift has been bestowed upon us than the individual mind and the control of it. No matter if you have freedom of speech, or if they are the president of the United States, you not free unless you have a mind of your own and the delight that goes with it. Take a long, hard look at these children here. Are they free? Yes. The great joy on their faces leads me to believe that they are truly free. Their mothers and fathers may not be able to speak openly about what they believe, nor may they have money, but what truly matters is what they have in their hearts. I can see that they know life will change, but they are ready for it, and will love and cherish their freedom to live. I think that this is the same type of independence that Will, Henry, and Jean Paul strive to find. The capped do not have this great joy. THEY

DO

NOT

LIVE. More than ever, I find this joy in the deepest of hardships. The poorest of the poor, the lowest of the low, the least of these find joy in their lives, and the freedom of their very living. Will sees an oppisite death in every capped person he comes across.He does not want this for himself. This is what made him keep going on. This is what helped him through his journey. He wanted freedom. Will knows that all the happieness at the Castle of the Red Tower was wasted on people who cannot enjoy their own spirit, because they are puppets to the Tripods. What was the point of celebrating when you don't have your own concience to begin with? This is why freedom is so important in The White Mountains.