October 31 (Saturday)

October 31 (Saturday) is a date marker that places Tommy and his mother’s visit to his father’s grave at the center of the day’s recorded events. The scene turns a family visit into a tense disclosure: his mother says Staffan has noticed that something has gone missing from his apartment since their previous visit.

Date and Narrative Context

The narrative explicitly marks the day as Saturday, October 31. A Shakespeare passage immediately precedes the marker, but the dated material itself moves into ordinary events rather than developing the quotation’s dramatic imagery.

The Visit to the Grave

As dusk approaches, Tommy and his mother go to his father’s grave, just inside the embankment bordering Råcksta Lake. His mother remains quiet on the way. Tommy initially thinks she is grieving, but when they reach the small road running parallel to the lake, she tells him that Staffan says something has disappeared from his apartment since their last visit.

Significance

The scene shifts the visit from an apparent act of mourning to an uncomfortable conversation about a missing item. The evidence does not identify what is missing or establish what follows; the date’s significance lies in fixing the disclosure to the graveyard walk and in showing Tommy receiving it from his mother.