Boys and Girls (1983) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The story takes place on an isolated fox farm in rural Canada. The farm is enclosed by a high fence and a lockable gate, creating a self-contained world that functions like a small, closed community. This isolated compound serves as both a working farm and the only world the children know, reinforcing the sense of confinement that permeates the narrative.

• fox farm
• setting
• rural Canada
• isolated farm
• compound

The events unfold during the transition from autumn to early winter. This is the critical period when the father harvests fur from silver foxes and the family kills horses to feed the foxes. The seasonal rhythm drives the story, with the busy fur-season giving way to a tense, quiet winter that reflects the tightening grip of tradition and the emotional weight of the family's livelihood.

• autumn
• winter
• time period
• seasonal
• fur season

The film explores how society imposes limiting gender expectations on young people, particularly girls. The protagonist Margaret learns that no matter what she does, the world will see her as 'only a girl,' reducing her identity to her gender rather than her abilities or character. This theme is woven through her struggle between performing conventional ladylike behavior to please others and remaining true to her own curious, observant nature.

• gender roles
• gender expectations
• coming of age
• society
• girlhood

Animal cruelty is central to the narrative, exposing the emotional toll of the family's fur trade livelihood. The routine slaughter of foxes for their fur and horses to feed the foxes presents a world where violence is normalized by ritual and economic necessity rather than malice. This constant exposure to killing shapes Margaret's moral awakening as she grapples with empathy for the animals and loyalty to her family.

• animal cruelty
• fur trade
• slaughter
• morality
• compassion

The fenced and locked farm compound represents a claustrophobic world that restricts the characters' freedom. Like a medieval town surrounded by walls, the farm creates boundaries both physical and social. Margaret's final act of defiance, choosing not to close the door, symbolizes a break from the oppressive cycle of confinement, suggesting the possibility of escape from limiting expectations.

• confinement
• freedom
• isolation
• escape
• boundaries

Margaret is the protagonist, a curious and observant young girl who increasingly recognizes the moral consequences of her family's livelihood. She struggles with fear, empathy for the animals, and a growing longing for autonomy. While performing conventional ladylike behavior to please those around her, she internally grapples with the conflict between family loyalty and her own sense of justice and identity.

• Margaret
• protagonist
• main character
• girl
• autonomy

Laird is Margaret's brother, a quiet observer who shares in their sheltered world and begins to see the limits of their father's authority. He stands alongside Margaret as they both process the violence they witness, representing the shared burden of growing up in a restrictive family system. His presence reinforces the theme that both children are constrained by the same gender expectations and family dynamics.

• Laird
• brother
• character
• supporting character
• family

The film has a melancholic tone rooted in quiet sadness over lost innocence and the imposition of limiting gender roles. The ending is bittersweet, Margaret gains painful self-awareness, losing childhood freedom but gaining consciousness about her place in a restrictive world. The father's crushing verdict about her being 'only a girl' lands not as simple tragedy but as a complex realization of the society she inhabits.

• emotional tone
• bittersweet
• melancholy
• ending
• coming of age