The Chrysalids Justice Quotes

David’s Fight for Justice
By the time David is sixteen, he has already experienced major changes in his life. His views towards the Waknuk society, and his opinions on deviations differ from everyone else living in Waknuk. In the book, The Chrysalids by John Wyndham, a young boy with the name of David finds out that he is telepathic, and that he is not the same as everyone else. Being telepathic is classified as having a deviation and living in Waknuk with a deviation is against the law. He meets a girl named Sophie who has six toes. She also has to hide her abnormality from the rest of the population. When David finds out about Sophie’s secret, it changes that way he views people with deviations, and how he views the laws on deviations.
His father has raised him to believe that every human who did not fall under the Definition of Man was not perfect, and should be punished for his or her imperfection. He now does not view people the same way as his father does. He believes that someone with a deviation should be treated with the exact same amount of respect as someone who does not have a deviation. David is a fearless and daring boy who does not believe that people with deviations should be just thrown out of civilization to die.
David believes that every living thing should be treated equally no matter if they have a deviation or if they do not. He believes that individuals should have the right to stay and live in their own town. They should not be forced to abandon where they live because of a small deviation like a toe, a larger deviation, or an internal deviation like David’s. David’s father, Joseph has the exact opposite opinion as David. He believes that anyone with the slightest deviation is a curse from God and should be sent to the Fringes to die immediately. Once Joseph tells David to go to his room because he was wishing for a third hand he thinks, “I knew well enough what that meant, but I knew, too, that with my father in his present mood it would happen whether I told or not. I set my jaw, and turned to go. My father followed, picking up a whip from the table as he came.” (51) This occurred right after Alan told Joseph, and the inspector that he saw a young girl who had six toes hanging out with David. David kept Sophie’s secret for a long time, and he knew that it could come back and hurt him. David is being courageous because he is protecting Sophie by putting her life before his own. He does not want to see her get hurt. He cares a lot about her and the relationship that they built together over their years of friendship. According to the laws of Waknuk you can be sent to prison for not reporting a human deviation. David does not want to be sent to prison, but he is willing to risk that to keep Sophie safe. Joseph additionally thought that for David’s punishment, he had the right to beat him because of the lie that he kept from him. David keeping that secret from Joseph is extremely brave of him because he knew that if Joseph found out, he would be in serious trouble. David is also not being treated fairly by Joseph. He does not deserve to get beaten by his own father for trying to keep his friend safe. David is a trustworthy boy who does not have the same views on deviations as the rest of the people in Waknuk.
David is an extremely courageous boy who does not think people should be sent to the Fringes where they will die because of a small deviation.
After David sees Sophie’s foot and understands the repercussions of it, David thinks, “A blasphemy was, as had been impressed upon enough, a frightful thing. Yet there was nothing frightful about Sophie. She was simply an ordinary little girl- if a great deal more sensible and braver than most. Yet, according to the Definition…”(14) At this point, David does not understand why having six toes on each foot can be so life threatening. He has to prove to Mrs. Wender that he is going to protect Sophie whenever he can, and that he is taking her secret extremely seriously. David could report Sophie’s deviation to his father or to the inspector at any time and David would be thought of as the person who did the right thing. He also has to be exceptionally brave because he is forced to go against his father’s wishes to keep Sophie safe. David does not agree with his father’s beliefs, or with what he values, but he knows that he could get in serious trouble if Joseph finds out that David is keeping Sophie’s secret. David is a kind-hearted boy who thinks everyone should be treated fairly regarding his or her
appearance. David Strorm is a very brave, admirable, and principled boy. He is willing to defy the laws of Waknuk and put himself in danger in order to stand up for a friend who he feels is a victim of an injustice. He believes that everyone should be treated with respect, no matter what they look like. He has always stood up for himself, and still continuously defends Sophie and Rosalind. In todays society fighting for what you value and what you think is right is extremely important. Everyone should be treated equally, and should not back down from what they believe in.
WORK CITED
Wyndham, John. The Chrysalids. London, England: Penguin Books, 1958. Print.