In response to Germany’s bombing of Britain during World War II, the British Government evacuated vulnerable members of the population, like children, from cities to more rural and less targeted areas. Images like the one of Penny and Primrose on the platform were seen throughout the country as English families from all socioeconomic backgrounds tried to protect their children. “The Thing in the Forest” begins by characterizing Penny, Primrose, and the other evacuees' youth, and thus their vulnerability. The narrator describes a platform crowded with very small children, some too little to be traveling alone in the safest of times—an indicator of the fear that drove English parents to send their children to live with strangers. In this way, “The Thing in the Forest" closely represents the bleak reality of this period. However, by incorporating elements of the imaginary to represent one of the most difficult moments in England’s history, Byatt blends realism, or in this case historical fiction, with fantasy.

The girls find a fragile solace in clinging to each other, using their friendship as a shield against the terror of the bombings and the confusion of their mothers having sent them away.