Oliver’s nightlight is a symbol that represents his father’s love. Though Oliver dislikes so many things about his dad, including his father’s derision of Oliver’s fear of the dark, the fact that his father brought him a nightlight is evidence that he loved his son despite displaying such a harsh demeanor and making such morally questionable choices. Oliver, like Hadley, has trouble understanding his father’s choices. He says that his dad must have thought he “was asleep, or else he’d never be caught dead” plugging the light in (78). Oliver’s dad clearly did not want to be seen capitulating to Oliver’s fear, just as he did not show any outward, obvious signs of affection to his young son. However, his decision to purchase and install the light proves that he did care about alleviating Oliver’s fears.

Hadley interprets the actions of Oliver’s father far more kindly than Oliver does, for she states that Oliver’s father “came around in the end” (230) and that his love for his son eventually won out, overwhelming any concerns he had about Oliver’s courage. She thinks that Oliver and his dad never had enough time to fully understand one another. Oliver tells her that although his room has since been turned into a guest room, the nightlight is still there.