The Last Unicorn

Unicorns as a symbol represent innocence, and the motif of unicorns, or lack thereof, contributes to the theme of the Loss of Innocence. As Schmendrick describes in Chapter 6, “Unicorns are for beginnings […] for innocence and purity, for newness. Unicorns are for young girls” (97). This is why Molly Grue, who is well into her thirties and “prematurely old” (76-77), reacts so emotionally when she finally sees a unicorn. Molly has lived a hard life that has aged her in ways beyond just physically. She laments that the unicorn did not visit her sooner, asking “how dare you come to me now, when I am this?” (96). Molly’s reaction to the unicorn shows the way she believes the unicorn’s presence could have preserved some part of her, likely her innocence.

Unicorns as a symbol of innocence is reinforced later in the same chapter when a prince and princess attempt to summon a unicorn as part of their engagement. The princess asserts “If there really were such things as unicorns, one would have come to me. I called as sweetly as anyone could, and I had the golden bridle. And of course I am pure and untouched” (102).