Although the plague eventually recedes, the village will never be the same again. Maybe most people will do what Anna did and skip town. Maybe most will decide to stick around and rebuild. Either way, the Eyam that existed before the plague is gone forever.

Our brains get blown when Mompellion drops this bomb near the end of the novel, basically saying that he no longer believes in God after Elinor's death. He was able to rationalize suffering when it was somewhat separate from him, but now that it's hit close to home, he doesn't know how to deal.

Everyone in the village experiences suffering, but the reactions each person has to it vary wildly. Anna, for example, becomes much stronger as a result of the pain she experiences. Mompellion, on the other hand, is emotionally and spiritually crushed by Elinor's death.