Chapter 32: “The Beginning” — Summary, Analysis, and Study Notes
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Chapter 32: “31. The Beginning” – Summary and Analysis
Summary
The chapter opens with Henry Berghast at his desk, restless and unable to focus. He senses that something is wrong, though he cannot name it. His unease centers on the nursemaid, Susan Crowley, and her reaction to his plan to send the baby away for its own protection. He decides to check the orsine beneath Cairndale, the mystical gateway that connects to the drughr’s realm. Descending into the cistern, he finds the orsine blazing with unnatural intensity—a sign that its protective wards have weakened. Realizing the danger, he races back to the manor, past a startled Bailey and through the halls, only to find the baby’s crib empty.
Meanwhile, Jacob Marber, cloaked in dust to conceal his presence, has already taken the child. He is aided by Walter Laster, the gatekeeper, who guides him through a hidden passage in a broom closet. Walter’s secret route leads them into a sheet-draped sitting room and then into the grand foyer, where they are confronted by Miss Davenshaw, a blind woman who seems to sense their true purpose. When the baby begins to cry and emit a faint blue glow, Jacob strikes Miss Davenshaw down with a whip of dust and flees into the night, the baby shining ever brighter in his arms.
Berghast, alerted by Mrs. Harrogate to the discovery of a tunnel in the cellars, quickly deduces that Jacob has taken the child. He spots the baby’s blue glow across the fields and gives chase. Jacob, desperate to conceal the child’s light, tries to envelop the baby in a sphere of darkness, but the shine intensifies, causing him excruciating pain. A blinding flash throws him to the ground, leaving the earth scorched and smoldering. When Berghast and Mrs. Harrogate arrive at the scene, they find Jacob’s staggered footprints leading away—he is injured—but also a second, smaller set of prints belonging to a woman or girl, heading in a different direction. Berghast concludes that someone else has taken the baby.
That someone is Susan Crowley. Having fled Cairndale in a panic, she carries the baby through the Scottish countryside, hitching a ride with a farmer into Edinburgh, then taking a third-class railway ticket south. She travels through Leicester, Norwich, and Cambridge, always wary of pursuit, until her money runs out and she sneaks aboard a westbound freight train. In the freight car, the baby begins to shine again with a fierce blue light. Susan, exhausted and her milk failing, tries to feed the child, but a terrible pain erupts in her chest, and she collapses into the straw. The train rattles on, the baby crying in the darkness. Outside, a brown-haired girl bursts from the trees and claws her way up the embankment toward the freight car, while a man on horseback raises a rifle and takes aim.
Key Events
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Berghast discovers the orsine blazing, indicating the glyphic’s wards have weakened.
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He returns to find the baby missing from the crib.
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Jacob Marber, with Walter Laster’s help, escapes through a hidden passage.
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Miss Davenshaw confronts them; Jacob knocks her down and flees.
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The baby’s blue shine intensifies, and Jacob is thrown by a blinding flash.
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Berghast and Mrs. Harrogate find scorched earth and two sets of tracks: Jacob’s injured flight and a smaller set leading away.
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Susan Crowley, the nursemaid, has taken the baby and flees across Scotland and England.
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In a freight car, the baby shines again, and Susan collapses in pain.
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A brown-haired girl approaches the train as a horseman takes aim.
Character Development
Henry Berghast is shown as a man of calculation and control, but his unease and frantic dash reveal his vulnerability. His initial suspicion of Susan Crowley proves justified, yet he misjudges her resourcefulness. His satisfaction at the end—believing the woman “won’t get far”—underscores his confidence, but also his blindness to the baby’s agency.
Jacob Marber is a study in desperation and failure. He uses deception and violence to seize the child, but his attempt to contain the baby’s power backfires catastrophically. His injury and staggered retreat mark a turning point: he is no longer the confident predator but a wounded fugitive.
Susan Crowley emerges as a maternal protector. Her flight is impulsive but determined. She sacrifices her own safety and ultimately her health to keep the baby from Berghast and Marber. Her backstory—having lost one baby—explains her fierce attachment. Her collapse in the freight car is both tragic and heroic.
Walter Laster is revealed as a weak, sickly man manipulated by Jacob, yet he shows unexpected resourcefulness in guiding the escape. His betrayal of Cairndale is motivated by his illness and vulnerability, and Berghast’s cold remark that he is “already dead” highlights the cost of his choices.
The baby is a passive yet powerful presence. Its blue shine is both a beacon and a weapon, causing pain to those who try to control it. The child’s agency is hinted at through its reactions—crying, shining, and ultimately harming Susan—suggesting it is not merely an object to be fought over.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
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The cost of power: The baby’s blue shine is a symbol of immense power that harms those who wield it. Jacob’s attempt to contain it leads to his injury; Susan’s care for the child causes her collapse. Power is not free—it exacts a toll.
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Deception and concealment: Jacob uses dust to cloak his presence, Walter hides a passage, and Susan disguises her flight. Yet the baby’s light cannot be hidden, symbolizing the futility of trying to suppress truth or destiny.
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Maternal protection: Susan’s flight is driven by a mother’s love, contrasting with Berghast’s strategic interest and Jacob’s possessive desire. Her sacrifice elevates her above the other adults.
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The game of strategy: Berghast and the drughr are described as playing an “old, endless game” with the child as a decisive piece. This motif frames the chase as a chess match, but the baby’s unpredictable power disrupts their plans.
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Escape and pursuit: The chapter is structured around a chase—Berghast pursuing Jacob, Susan fleeing both, and the mysterious girl and horseman at the end. This motif drives the narrative and raises the stakes.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter is a pivotal turning point in Ordinary Monsters. It removes the baby from the safety of Cairndale and sets in motion a cross-country pursuit that will define the rest of the novel. The revelation of the baby’s destructive power—capable of injuring even a talent like Jacob—establishes the child as a force to be reckoned with, not merely a passive victim. Susan’s flight introduces a new layer of moral complexity, as her maternal instincts clash with the larger forces at play. The final image of the brown-haired girl and the horseman creates a cliffhanger that propels the reader into the next chapter, promising new alliances and threats.
Study Questions and Answers
- Why does Berghast suspect Susan Crowley before the baby is taken?
Berghast is uneasy about Susan’s reaction when he tells her the baby must be sent away. He notes that she might prove an “impediment” to his plans, indicating his distrust of her emotional attachment. This suspicion is validated when she later flees with the child.
- What does the baby’s blue shine signify, and how does it affect those who try to control it?
The blue shine is a manifestation of the baby’s innate power, tied to the orsine and the drughr. It intensifies when the child is threatened or distressed. Jacob’s attempt to contain it causes him excruciating pain and a blinding flash that throws him away. Susan’s care for the baby leads to a similar painful collapse, suggesting that the power is dangerous to anyone who gets too close.
- How does Susan’s flight contrast with Jacob’s attempt to take the baby?
Jacob uses deception, violence, and manipulation to seize the baby, treating it as a tool for his own ends. Susan, by contrast, flees out of love and a desire to protect the child from the “nefarious purposes” of Cairndale. Her journey is marked by sacrifice—she gives up her home, her safety, and ultimately her health—while Jacob’s is marked by aggression and failure. This contrast highlights the theme of maternal protection versus possessive ambition.
Navigation
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Next chapter: 32. The Girl on the Embankment