Dead parents on the ground
An important image appears in the beginning of the novel when the narrator describes the image of his dead parents on the floor. The image is important because it represents the first time when Nicholas was no longer scared of death and was rather fascinated by the dead bodies.
Dead bodies in a pit
An important image appears in the scene where Nicholas follows the carriage taking his dead parents to the common pit where the people affected by the plague were thrown into. The image of the people in the pit is important because it shows just how many people were affected by the plague and how many people died as a result.
A boy destroying a spider web
Shortly after talking about the death of his parents, Nicholas Dyer compares the act of dying with the act a small boy would do when destroying a fragile spider web. The boy can do so even though he is not powerful and he may do it without caring about the consequences of his actions. In a similar way, the narrator argues, the human life can be ended by various outside influences in a matter of minutes. The narrator thus constructs through this the image of a fragile life, being ended by some outside forces.
Could hardly stop himself from smiling
An important image is described in the part of the story where the Mason’s son felt to his death from the Church. Nicholas was also present when the incident happened and he gathered around the corpse like the rest of the people did. However, instead of being shocked by what he saw, he admits he could hardly stop himself from smiling. This image is important because it shows just how deranged Nicholas was and how hard it was for him to understand the feelings other people had.
