The Seventh Most Important Thing

Throughout The Seventh Most Important Thing, trash transforms into “treasure,” valuable or usable things. Most prominently, Mr. Hampton’s sculpture of heaven turns the seven important items from trash to a treasure that Arthur will eventually share with the world. Arthur also comes across other items in the neighborhood trash that become useful for his friends and family. “Trash” is also used to refer to people at different points in the story.

Mr. Hampton’s sculpture shows the ultimate transformation of trash to treasure. His sculpture is literally trash that he’s made beautiful. During World War II, Mr. Hampton made a box out of debris from the war, which he keeps as a reminder of the darkness in the world that he strives to light up. The sculpture represents the box on a larger scale. Mr. Hampton takes items people don’t want and uses them to create something the world needs. The sculpture is many years in the making and may never be truly finished. It takes even more time for the art to be displayed where people can see and appreciate it, which represents the journey from darkness to light. Like the sculpture, people are a work in progress, and their light may be many years in the making.