The Farm Animals and Mortality

I'm Thinking of Ending Things

The farm’s sheep, dead lambs, and suffering pigs make mortality concrete and foreshadow the book’s questions about whether death ends pain.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

The Sheep in the Barn The Sheep in the Barn from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Sheep in the Barn A quiet scene Jake shows the narrator the sheep in their dim barn. They chew cud and watch the visitors without much movement.

The Sheep in the Barn from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Sheep in the Barn A quiet scene Jake shows the narrator the sheep in their dim barn. They chew cud and watch the visitors without much movement.

The Sheep in the Barn A quiet scene Jake shows the narrator the sheep in their dim barn. They chew cud and watch the visitors without much movement. Life seen at close range The scene is ordinary to Jake but strange to the narrator. Its cold stillness prepares her to notice the animals as lives rather than farm scenery.

The Dead Lambs The Dead Lambs from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Dead Lambs A stark discovery The narrator sees two lifeless lambs stacked beside the barn.

The Dead Lambs from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Dead Lambs A stark discovery The narrator sees two lifeless lambs stacked beside the barn.

The Dead Lambs A stark discovery The narrator sees two lifeless lambs stacked beside the barn. Their intact wool makes them look almost like objects rather than once-living creatures. Degrees of death She thinks of death as a condition with varying degrees, then recognizes that these animals are completely dead. The image unsettles her more than she expects.

The Pigs’ Suffering The Pigs’ Suffering from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Pigs’ Suffering A hidden injury Jake explains that the old pigs were found covered in maggots after lying in one place for days.

The Pigs’ Suffering from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Pigs’ Suffering A hidden injury Jake explains that the old pigs were found covered in maggots after lying in one place for days.

The Pigs’ Suffering A hidden injury Jake explains that the old pigs were found covered in maggots after lying in one place for days. Their apparent stillness had concealed severe suffering. Distance conceals pain The story shows how a creature can look calm from afar while being injured up close. It adds a disturbing parallel to the narrator’s difficulty reading other people.

Euthanasia as Necessity Euthanasia as Necessity from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". Euthanasia as Necessity A final intervention Jake says his father had to put the pigs down because infection and suffering had become unbearable.

Euthanasia as Necessity from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". Euthanasia as Necessity A final intervention Jake says his father had to put the pigs down because infection and suffering had become unbearable.

Euthanasia as Necessity A final intervention Jake says his father had to put the pigs down because infection and suffering had become unbearable. The explanation presents death as release from pain. No certainty beyond death The narrator accepts the practical decision but wonders whether suffering might continue after death. Her fear exceeds the farm’s matter-of-fact account.

The Question Returns The Question Returns from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Question Returns Farm images resurface The narrator’s earlier fear that death may not end suffering returns during her ordeal in the school.

The Question Returns from "I'm Thinking of Ending Things". The Question Returns Farm images resurface The narrator’s earlier fear that death may not end suffering returns during her ordeal in the school.

The Question Returns Farm images resurface The narrator’s earlier fear that death may not end suffering returns during her ordeal in the school. The pig story becomes more than an account of farm work. Mortality foreshadows the ending The images of bodies and pain anticipate the novel’s fatal conclusion. The book refuses to make death a simple escape from suffering.

During the nighttime farm tour

Immediately after leaving the barn

During the walk around the farm

At the end of the pig story

During the school ordeal