A key theme in the novel is the human need for meaning in life and for certainty. All of the characters are searching for meaning in their lives in one way or another. Diotallevi has devoted himself to study the Torah and looking for meaning in the text of that ancient work. Belbo looks in several places for meaning and eventually finds it in the Plan. Casaubon looks for meaning throughout the novel and eventually finds it with Lia and his son, but gives all of that up to look for a supposedly deeper meaning in the Plan.
After the murder of Belbo, Casaubon realizes that it is the search for meaning that has led everyone astray. It has led them to look for meaning where there is none and to ignore meaning.....
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