Eye of the Needle

A stiletto is a thin, narrow knife. Faber wears a stiletto on his left forearm as a form of protection. Faber uses this stiletto to kill Mrs. Garden, several Home Guard soldiers, his former co-tenant, Parkin, and a German agent. To Faber, this stiletto is a symbol of strength and protection, and when he is staying with Lucy and David, he obsessively checks to make sure it is both hidden and accessible to him. Faber is clearly trained and comfortable in using this weapon both in a surprise attack and a face-to-face fight. The stiletto is a symbol of Faber’s professionalism as a spy, as well as his willingness to protect himself at all costs.

When Percy and Bloggs use the stiletto to track Faber’s movements, the symbolism of the knife changes slightly. For them, the hidden weapon symbolizes the hidden danger Faber represents and the lengths he is willing to go to get his information into Hitler’s hands. It therefore becomes a symbol of the danger that information poses for all of Britain.

After the car accident, David lives with the amputation of both his legs, requiring a wheelchair to help him get around. The reality of living with such a dramatic injury has left David struggling to prove himself as a man.