Departure and Dispersal
The motif of young men and women leaving Cape Breton to lead a new, modern life elsewhere permeates almost all stories in MacLeod's collection. The sustained series of departures from home and farewells to family and place creates the poignant sense that traditional ways of life and family structures are, quite literally, "falling apart." Thus, the motif of departure and dispersal serves to highlight the loss of traditional lifestyles to the modern convenience of the "twentieth century."
Hair and Eye Color
Throughout MacLeod's stories, hair and eye color are symbolic of the heritage and aspirations of different characters.
Typically, MacLeod associates characters with red hair, such as the children in "The Boat" and Agnes' love interest in "Island," with exuberance and a desire to transcend archetypes and tradition. Indeed, such individuals, particularly Agnes' love interest in "Island" and the father in "The Boat" (whose red hair has "faded to white"), are those who provide others with hope of escaping the stifling restrictions of traditional, isolated existences, to live in the individualist freedom of the modern world.
Conversely, brown hair, such as that of the mother in "The Boat," represents a stoic traditionalism and a rigid, noble adherence to traditional principles. By extension, MacLeod associates brown hair with resistance to an encroaching modernity.
Music and the Gaelic Language
The motif of music throughout MacLeod's work powerfully encapsulates the heritage and sentimentality of the rugged peoples of the Gaelic diaspora who have re-established themselves in a new continent as the inhabitants of Cape Breton. For characters who have left Cape Breton, traditional Gaelic ballads and laments often serve as moving reminders of the heritage and of the struggles of their forefathers. These include the hardships of mining and fishing, as well as the ruggedness of the landscape.
Music also symbolizes decaying lifestyles and occupations. Just as traditional occupations of fishing and mining are increasingly disregarded and scorned by the new generations, so too are Gaelic song and the Gaelic language.
Clothing
In multiple stories, clothing is symbolic of values, beliefs, and sociocultural origins.
The "dark suits" worn by Angus and Grandpa Gilbert in "The Return" are symbols of the affluent and detached cleanness of the modern world, particularly when they are accompanied by shining gold watches and "silver cigarette holders." Suits also become representative of isolation and restriction, with Angus' suit being likened to a "prison."
The starkly contrasting items of clothing worn by Archibald and the itinerant urban producer in "The Tuning of Perfection" represent the opposition between the lifestyles of traditional Cape Breton and modern Canada. Archibald's continuous and meticulous use of breeches to prevent his trousers "sagging" around his waist mirrors his indomitable and careful adherence to proper practice and Gaelic singing traditions. Conversely, the slogan "if you've got it, flaunt it" emblazoned across the front of the producer's T-shirt represent the superficial and even cavalier attitude of modern individuals.
The Boat in "The Boat"
In "The Boat," the family's fishing vessel, named Jenny Lynn, is a symbol of the "constancy" of traditions across generations and of the importance of the sea for traditional fishing towns and hamlets.
The depiction of the Jenny Lynn as always "permeated with the same odour" is symbolic of the steady, seafaring identity that is the constant place of work and an unfailing repository of connection to the sea. Moreover, considering this boat occupies a prominent place in the conversations of the family it supports, it can be deduced that a connection to the sea is incredibly important to families of fishing towns.
