Riddley Walker

The village cremate Riddley’s father on a funeral pyre that night. People share their memories of Brooder Walker, proclaiming that he was “a good man” (24) who did his best for the community. Riddley is last to speak but he cannot bring himself to say anything. He keeps his thoughts to himself. Lorna closes the ceremony as dogs howl in the distance. She advises the crowd to think carefully about the strange events in recent days, suggesting that the death of Brooder, the death of the baby, and the death of the dog may not be a bad sign, but an indication of rebirth and strength. She tells the group that they are now “ready for the new” (25). The baby, she mentions, was born in Widders Dump, a nearby area where people are excavating the dangerous machines of the pre-apocalypse age. Riddley begins to feel people looking at him and placing their expectations in him. Later, they skin and eat the dead dog. After, Riddley skins the dog’s head and thinks about making clothing out of its bones. However, he “never did get to any of that” (26).