Outlawed

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-3

Chapters 4-8

Chapters 9-12

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Symbols & Motifs

Disguises

The women of Hole in the Wall are in disguise so often that it can be difficult to tell when they’re being their true selves. Disguises protect the wearer, trick others, and act as manifestations of the Gang’s different selves. Through the symbol of disguise, North suggests that people have several different versions of who they actually are. Disguises express these different facts of the self. News, for example, doesn’t consider dressing up as a man a disguise, even though it serves to protect her identity as a woman. The Kid’s disguise is so integral to their character that the disguise becomes the person. Furthermore, though the Hole in the Wall Gang wear disguises with intention, North suggests that everyone wears some sort of disguise when trying to fit in.

Horses

Horses are an important symbol of power. Horses are the Gang’s lifeline; with a horse, they can travel fast, rob more, and live better lives. They treat their horses with love and respect. When Ada first meets her horse Amity, she must learn how to establish a trust by communicating nonverbally. When Amity stops bucking, and accepts and even loves Ada, Ada discovers the power of connecting with a fellow living creature. Amity and Ada become a cohesive unit, even friends.

Jail

Jail is both a physical space for imprisonment and a mentality of collaborating with one’s oppressors. Jail is a constant threat looming over Ada, and when she meets a woman who has been in the jail for 20 years, Ada believes this fate is worse than death. The novel’s setting of the American West, where people can roam, explore, and create new towns, heightens Ada’s urgent desire for freedom. Being in jail means forgoing the beauty of the landscape and its endless potential.

But people can also imprison themselves. For much of the book, Ada’s self-hatred is a prison: She despises her body and its supposed limitations. Other women in Hole in the Wall and Lark offer a contrast: They accept and love their bodies, so they are truly free. Ada must grapple with and move away from the blame she places on herself in order to be free from the jail cell of her mind.