Page 114, Chapter 17
Victor turned around and looked into a pair of frightened black eyes. "She's really not well," Dottor Massimo's son murmured. He quickly lowered his head, but Victor had already recognized him. His hair was tied back in a tight little ponytail and his eyes didn't look quite as arrogant as they had before, but there could be no doubt: This was the boy who so innocently asked Victor the time, just before he and his friends had tricked him.
This paragraph was one that completely knocked me off of my feet. When I read this part, I could not believe that Dottor Massimo's son was the one and only Scipio, the same kid who was the so called "Thief Lord," and the same kid who was helping other children less fortunate than him by providing them with a place to live and money to survive on. I found it astonishing that this little boy, who lived a very wealthy lifestyle, also had a very lonely family life. After reading this section of the story, I felt a lot of compassion for Scipio because his life lacked love and affection, and that is the kind of life that he ultimately got to lead while he was the "Thief Lord" living with the rest of his friends. To me, this paragraph indicates the kind of boy Scipio truly was.
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No matter how old people are, if they are missing a vital element in their life, they will compensate in some form or another. Scipio had no love and affection at home, so he took these orphans under his wing and they became his family. They needed him in a time when all he wanted was to be needed.
ReplyDeleteI agree, this was such a radical change in our perception of Scipio. The book so far had shown him so strong and independent, seeing him vulnerable was like a slap in the face. This is another example of the author's use of irony that works wonderfully.
ReplyDeleteThis was a turning point in the characterization of Scipio. He had created his own fantasy world where he could be in control of his own destiny with the Thief Lord identity. He was lost and in a sense abused in his own world-a world of extravigance that others might view as ideal. Until the reader finds out how harshly his father treats him they have no idea of the perils of his life.
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