Love vs. Fear

A main theme throughout the novel is that fear of personal harm often prevents people from reaching out in love to others. From the very beginning, Crow explains how Osh and Maggie are the only people on Cuttyhunk Island who have ever touched her physically. The islanders do not even get too close to her, but rather step to the side as she passes them on the paths. For many years, Crow does not understand the reason for their behavior,. Eventually, she learns that it is because they are afraid that she may carry leprosy, a horribly disfiguring and fatal disease. Naturally, Crow wants to be like everyone else and she asks Maggie if the islanders will be always be afraid of her. "Not forever...But some people let fear set its hook in them, so it's hard to pull out" (28).

Two residents of...