Dented Salmon Cans (Symbol)
In the first chapter, Shuggie spends his break at the grocery store looking for dented cans of salmon that he can purchase at a discount. The damaged merchandise is a symbol for Shuggie's poverty. Having lost his mother at sixteen, Shuggie works to pay for his tiny room at a boarding house and has to find ways to cut costs, such as buying discounted food.
Big Shug's Hackney (Symbol)
The black taxicab (or "hackney") Big Shug drives is a symbol of his infidelity. Although Big Shug uses his taxi to make money to support his family, when he is in his cab, he is free to roam the city and find women to have sex with in the back seat. Shug's vanity is revealed when he looks in the mirrors and considers how handsome he appears. The confidence builds as he goes around the city hoping to find drunk women leaving clubs to give rides to. Ultimately, the taxi allows him to transport his family out to Pithead, where he abandons them to live with another woman.
Shuggie Isn't Like Other Boys (Motif)
Throughout the novel, characters around Shuggie comment on how he isn't like other boys—coded language that foreshadows the revelation of his homosexuality. Stuart introduces the motif when Shuggie, in 1992, looks in the mirror at his bedsit and considers how he appears more physically effeminate than other young men; meanwhile, he tries to memorize football match scores to fit in with straight masculine culture. The motif arises again when Shuggie takes an interest, as a six-year-old, in his mother's feminine garments. As he grows up, older characters comment on the strangeness of him playing with a doll. He is also called a "poof" by Johnny, a slightly older boy who explains that poofs want to be girls and that they do "dirty things with other boys." Ultimately, Shuggie comes to his own conclusions about his sexuality when he admits to Leanne that he isn't attracted to girls, just as she isn't attracted to boys.
Petrol Station Job (Symbol)
The job Agnes takes as a petrol station attendant is a symbol of humility. Although she has always presented herself as more refined and glamorous than the people around her, Agnes recognizes the need to support herself and her children, having been abandoned by Big Shug. With the help of AA, Agnes comes out of her denial about the state of her life, and sacrifices her pride to take a job she considers beneath her station in life. The turn toward humility suggests that things can get better in Agnes's life when she allows her pride to take a hit and accepts that some things are out of her control.
Leek's Acceptance Letter (Symbol)
The acceptance letter to a BA in fine arts course that Leek keeps in his sketchbook is a symbol of his unrealized talent and sacrifice. Although he had been accepted to a course that would have allowed him to utilize his artistic talent, Leek chose to take a trade job instead, choosing his family over himself. The reader's knowledge of Leek's sacrifice becomes particularly hard to bear when Agnes is verbally abusive to her son, her alcoholism provoking resentment rather than gratitude for what he does to take care of her and Shuggie.
