The Many Lives of a Symbol

Earth Abides

This flow traces how objects and practices acquire collective meaning when inherited institutions disappear and a new society searches for continuity.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

The Hammer as Tool The Hammer as Tool from "Earth Abides". The Hammer as Tool A material object Isherwood Williams retrieves a miner’s hammer after the rattlesnake bite.

The Hammer as Tool from "Earth Abides". The Hammer as Tool A material object Isherwood Williams retrieves a miner’s hammer after the rattlesnake bite.

The Hammer as Tool A material object Isherwood Williams retrieves a miner’s hammer after the rattlesnake bite. Its first meaning is practical: a sturdy tool he can carry and use. Memory attaches The hammer becomes associated with the day he survives the first crisis. Its identity grows through use and recollection rather than any supernatural quality.

A Personal Keepsake A Personal Keepsake from "Earth Abides". A Personal Keepsake Comfort in the hand Isherwood Williams keeps taking the hammer when he leaves safety.

A Personal Keepsake from "Earth Abides". A Personal Keepsake Comfort in the hand Isherwood Williams keeps taking the hammer when he leaves safety.

A Personal Keepsake Comfort in the hand Isherwood Williams keeps taking the hammer when he leaves safety. Its weight comforts him even when he has no immediate use for it. An anchor after collapse As law, property, and familiar routines lose meaning, the hammer remains a stable object tied to his personal past. Its value is emotional before it becomes communal.

A Sacred Object Emerges A Sacred Object Emerges from "Earth Abides". A Sacred Object Emerges Ritual makes meaning Isherwood Williams uses the hammer to mark yearly ceremonies and keeps it in a prominent place.

A Sacred Object Emerges from "Earth Abides". A Sacred Object Emerges Ritual makes meaning Isherwood Williams uses the hammer to mark yearly ceremonies and keeps it in a prominent place.

A Sacred Object Emerges Ritual makes meaning Isherwood Williams uses the hammer to mark yearly ceremonies and keeps it in a prominent place. Children begin to treat it as an object of unusual power. The symbol escapes its owner He realizes that ordinary reverence can become superstition when there is little competing tradition. His effort to preserve a tool inadvertently gives The Tribe a sacred object.

Authority in the Assembly Authority in the Assembly from "Earth Abides". Authority in the Assembly A sign of continuity Isherwood Williams holds the hammer while presiding over meetings.

Authority in the Assembly from "Earth Abides". Authority in the Assembly A sign of continuity Isherwood Williams holds the hammer while presiding over meetings.

Authority in the Assembly A sign of continuity Isherwood Williams holds the hammer while presiding over meetings. Its presence helps younger members recognize an occasion as communal and important. Power and affection mixed The tool supports his authority but also reveals its limits. Members may honor the symbol while declining to follow his proposals.

The Tribal Inheritance The Tribal Inheritance from "Earth Abides". The Tribal Inheritance A final request When the fire forces the old man to flee, he insists that Jack retrieve the hammer.

The Tribal Inheritance from "Earth Abides". The Tribal Inheritance A final request When the fire forces the old man to flee, he insists that Jack retrieve the hammer.

The Tribal Inheritance A final request When the fire forces the old man to flee, he insists that Jack retrieve the hammer. The younger people’s alarm shows how deeply they associate it with his authority. Meaning transferred Isherwood Williams indicates that Jack should inherit it. The hammer now belongs to a tradition whose members no longer know the full history behind the object.

At the opening of the novel

During Isherwood Williams’s early travels

After the children begin school

During the Tribe’s mature years

On the Bay Bridge, as Isherwood Williams dies