Summary Of Miss Lucy's Farewell

Miss Lucy’s final confession to Tommy comes at a crucial point in their lives. Miss Lucy confesses that she shouldn’t of told Tommy that it was okay to not be creative because it was more important than she thought. The timing of this incident coincides perfectly with the fact that it is the students’ last summer at Hailsham. This signifies an end to their childhood as they go on with their lives beyond Hailsham. Miss Lucy’s sudden departure from the school removes the chance of clearing up the mysteries surrounding the importance of creativity at Hailsham. Her departure also serves as a loss for the students. Among the guardians Miss Lucy was the only one who tried to be truthful to the students. In the midst of his confusion Tommy regains his habit of temper tantrums as a way to cope with his anxiety about the future. He also finds a way to cope with his loss of Miss Lucy and the imminent loss of Hailsham by deciding to get back together with Ruth. This decision is indicative of the students need for each other as they go on to their uncertain futures outside of Hailsham.
As the Hailsham …show more content…
However, after a closer inspection they realize that she doesn’t really resemble Ruth. This instance actually serves to indicate the idea that throughout the students’ lives their knowledge and hopes revolved around stories and rumours, but we realize that this only works when they refrain from investigating their stories and rumours closely. The windows that they look through symbolize an invisible barrier that allows the students to observe the outside world without being able to interact with it. Unlike the magazine ad which suggested a fake hope of a future for Ruth this incident serves to reinforce the reality. Ruth reflects this idea by her ridiculing of the idea of finding “possibles” after all the hope she had built up had been