Social Justice

One of the most important aspects of "Jackaroo" is the search for social justice. In a society suppressed by a rigid structure in which everyone is subject not only to the king, but also to his Earls and Lords, many people suffer, especially during a hard winter such as that depicted in the book. Many people confront tragedy through no fault of their own: thieves take away the old couple's nanny goat, the weaver loses her holding after her husband dies, and many go hungry and must present themselves at the "doling," which is viewed almost as a kind of begging. In such a society, a myth such as Jackaroo would be welcome: a mysterious stranger provides social justice of his own kind. As the novel progresses, this is exactly what Gwyn ends up doing. She always uses the Jackaroo guise to restore what she (and the...