Tunes for Bears to Dance To

George voices the importance of the toy village carved by Mr. Levine when he says that it symbolizes “survival and how good can overcome evil” (64). The symbol supports two of the novella’s major themes: The Inescapability of the Past and The Everyday Nature of Evil.

Mr. Levine is recreating his former village down to the smallest detail, even including the village bully whom “everybody hated.” Where other characters are lost in the past or seek to ignore it, Mr. Levine uses his creation to honor his past and to communicate with others in the present day; when he wins an award, the village even connects him to the wider community of the city. Though the village is intrinsically tied to the most painful parts of Mr. Levine’s life, he refuses to let that trauma define what it means.

After Henry tells Mr. Hairston about Mr. Levine’s beautiful work, Mr. Hairston chooses it as the vehicle to destroy both Mr. Levine and Henry. Henry, for his part, associates the village so strongly with his friend that when he dreams about smashing it, a little figure running from the destruction is Mr.