The Man Who Was Thursday

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1908

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Download PDF

Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-2

Chapters 3-4

Chapters 5-6

Chapters 7-8

Chapters 9-10

Chapters 11-12

Chapters 13-14

Chapter 15

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

Anarchy

The mission to infiltrate and defeat anarchy is the initial premise of the novel. It is the catalyst for both character and plot development. Gregory’s appearance at the end of the novel as the true anarchist unveils his hatred of government and his desire for destruction. He is the personification of the policeman’s warning to Syme about intellectual fanatics and the dangerous educated criminal: “[…] they are too intellectual to think that man upon this earth can ever be quite free of original sin and the struggle. When they say that mankind shall be free at last, they mean that mankind shall commit suicide” (27).

Anarchy represents the social and political customs of Chesterton’s time. The Edwardian era was still heavily influenced by Victorian ideals which strictly governed what was proper and what was improper. These ideas were inflexible and unforgiving and primarily related to identity: appearance, attitude, relationships, and sexuality. Social norms also separated classes of people and contributed to the disparities between the rich and the poor. The anarchy movement of the early 20th Century coincided with a greater awareness of these disparities.

Nature

Nature has an intimate association with the theme of identity and its spiritual symbolism in the book. The setting for the story is almost exclusively outside. Descriptions of the sky, the sunset, and a park set the tone for the story. In addition, animals, trees, flowers, grass, and fields are symbols throughout the novel. Syme and Gregory first meet in a garden. Syme encounters a police officer while he paces on the banks of the Thames River, and a boat conveys him to the anarchist breakfast on the same river. Sunday’s thoughts are described as “[…] grow[ing] like a tropical forest” (32).

In contrast to the natural settings, the indoor settings that are included are dark or foreboding. The pub, which is the entrance to the anarchist meeting room, is described as “dreary and greasy” from the outside, and “close and dim” on the inside (9). The anarchist headquarters is underground, its walls lined with bombs.

The Days of Creation

Each of the six detectives is named for a different day of Creation, while the narrative’s God-like character is named Sunday. To varying degrees, these labels reflect aspects of the characters’ personalities. The most obvious example is Sunday, whose name signifies the day of rest. It is Sunday who finally alleviates Syme of his own metaphysical torment by revealing the “good news” (126) of the holy gospel, thus finally bringing peace to his mind and soul. Elsewhere, Syme represents the fourth day of Creation, on which God created the sun and moon. This may represent Syme’s own tortured identity as he vacillates between order and chaos. Dr. Bull, meanwhile, who is code-named Saturday, may be a pun based around the fact that God created cattle and other beasts on the sixth day. The Secretary is code-named Monday, the first day of Creation on which God created light. This may relate to the fact that it is the Secretary’s revelation of his identity that confirms to the council members that they are all undercover detectives.