Two Roads

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2018

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Chapters 1-4

Part 1, Chapters 5-11

Part 2, Chapters 12-19

Part 2, Chapters 20-24

Part 2, Chapter 25-Part 3, Chapter 30

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Symbols & Motifs

Roads and Circles

Roads are commonly used to represent the many journeys, both physical and metaphorical, that people undertake throughout life. Cal’s father takes this image one step further by describing the circular nature of some life journeys, emphasizing that just as seasons come back around again, individual paths can also rejoin. He therefore uses this idea to explain to Cal that the need for them to part ways also contains the promise of a future reunion. As the novel progresses, they accordingly go in different directions around the circle but will meet up at the end together again, united in fellowship just as the circle is a symbol of unity and continuity. The separate roads unite to create a circle: an apt symbol that shows how people can take multiple different paths to reach the same destination. As Cal grows and matures during his time at Challagi, he takes this symbolism with him and learns that regardless of what road he takes, he will walk it as a Creek. This means that his heritage accompanies him on his journeys even if it does not always directly affect which road he takes.

Birds

In the freewheeling life that Cal and his father embrace as “knights of the rails," they embody a unique flavor of freedom during an era that was fraught with many restrictions. In the fluidity of their traveling life, birds easily become symbolic of the relative freedom that they enjoy. Because birds can go wherever they want and are not hindered by the topography of the land, nor by the political boundaries that such lands bear as invisible burdens, they stand as the ultimate symbol of choosing one’s own way and shrugging off any and all environmental restrictions. Growing up in this unusual yet honorable lifestyle, Cal comes to value freedom above most other things in life, for his travels with his father teach him that there is always a way to get himself from one place to another, and he needs no one’s permission to travel where he will. Thus, it is only fitting that his Challagi friends bestow the Creek nickname of “Jay Bird” upon him. Originally meant as a joke to poke fun at his taciturn nature, the name also comes to signify everything that he prizes most in his own outlook and philosophy of life. Ultimately, even with all of his shifting identities, birds represent who Cal is at his core.

“Hobo Signs”

“Hobo signs” are actual marks made onto wood or stone that are meant to tell other hobos about the lay of the land: what resources are available, for example, or what the temperament of the locals happens to be. While this is their literal meaning, they also hold a symbolic meaning within the novel, as they demonstrate the many ways in which the migrant workers of the Great Depression developed their own rich and nuanced culture out on the road and on the rails. Most importantly, they stand as a reminder that all such travelers follow a code and take care of each other amidst the many dangers of the wide world. Being a “hobo” is a high calling, in Cal’s estimation, and he also strives to abide by this code of honor. Because of this code of honor and these signs, Cal and Pop know to be careful at Miz Euler’s house because the sign tells them that the homeowner meets transient people with a gun. Because they know that those who follow their code of honor would never take advantage of or hurt a person, this sign lets them know that Miz Euler has likely fallen afoul of a much less scrupulous traveler, and all subsequent travelers are now paying the price of one person’s lack of honor or common courtesy. Thus, the omnipresent “hobo signs” represent physical evidence of a tight-knit yet equally widespread and intangible culture, the values of which are just as honorably solid as those of people who have the means to live indoors.