Grief is the Thing with Feathers

Part 2 is the longest section of the novel, and it correspondingly encompasses the deepest stage of the family’s grief. In Part 1, Crow was merely introducing himself to Dad and the family, his presence only discernible at times by the presence of black feathers. However, in Part 2, Crow has become enmeshed within the fabric of the family, illustrated by their adoption of different terminology, such as referring to the house as their “nest.” In the scene with the grief demon, Porter writes, “Crow demonstrated to the demon what happens when a crow repels an intruder in the nest, if there are babies in that nest” (56). This designation of the house as Crow’s nest stands in direct contrast to Part 1, when the house was a nest he was raiding. The allusion to a nest also evokes feelings of safety and security, of a family huddled close together in protection against danger and the elements.

As grief becomes a part of the family’s daily life, the children start to form a more meaningful relationship with Crow, and he, in turn, shifts into a more parental role, reflecting his attempt at Caretaking During Bereavement. Crow refers to the boys as “my loves,” a pet name more commonly used by a maternal figure, and the boys show their acceptance of Crow through the fact that they are comfortable enough with him to do activities like coloring and playing hide-and-seek in a field filled with long grass. At the same time, however, the violent undercurrent of Crow’s presence remains, reflected through the boys’ continued violence. One of the most graphic moments in the book is when “the boys cooked Crow in an oven until he was nothing but cells” (29). Later, during the hurricane game, the boys cannot remember if they came up with the dangerous idea for climbing the unstable trees, or if Crow did. This bimodality of Crow’s relationship to the boys, alternating between caregiver and adversary, heightens the sense of vulnerability felt by all characters, reflecting The Emotional Turmoil of Grief. At the same time that the boys are vulnerable to violent whims and suggestions offered by Crow, Crow might find himself as the victim of those same violent whims.

Meanwhile, Dad appears oblivious to the tension that is building within his own household and to the danger that Crow and the boys pose to one another. He describes the boys as follows: “[T]he pain of them being so naturally kind is like appendicitis. I need to double over and hold myself because they are so kind and keep regenerating and recharging their kindness without any input from me” (46). This description simultaneously acknowledges his own emotional absence and presents a vision of his children that shows him to be entirely oblivious to the ways in which they are sometimes unkind to one another and violent to animals, like the guppy and Crow. It isn’t until Dad offers the simple observation, “The boys fight” (71), that he seems to recognize the reality of his children’s suffering.

Two essential episodes punctuate the end of Part 2: the birds of prey show, and the flashback of Dad’s visit to Oxford to see Ted Hughes. The flying show is important because it is the first time there is a sense of real familial unity between Dad and the boys. They are united by an admiration for the wild crow and shout, “GO CROW!” in unison. Dad’s remark at the end of the show, “[T]hat was probably the best day of my life since she died” (76), offers hope for happier times after a prolonged period of sadness and rage. The Oxford episode has a similarly hopeful tone, although it takes place long before Mum died. Hughes is described in a rosy light, making Dad’s love for him obvious: “[A] vast poet’s hand clamped down on his shoulder and the full-fathom-twenty drone boom-dry loveliness of Ted Hughes’ Yorkish accent coated our happy Dad” (84). By bringing the book back to a moment in time when Dad was completely, unreservedly, happy, Porter develops his character from a new angle, reemphasizing that happiness will be possible for the family in the future. Crow is both an extension of Dad’s psyche and a memento of Hughes, so it is no surprise that a crow is the one who has been able to bring Dad happiness once again at the flying show.