In THE LAST OF US Season 2, Episode 6, fans witnessed a deeply emotional chapter in Ellie’s journey. Along with Joel’s heartbreaking confession about the Fireflies and their final conversation, the episode quietly introduced a symbol that follows Ellie (Bella Ramsey) through key flashbacks: the moth.
While it might seem like a small detail at first, the moth appears multiple times and carries a heavy meaning. These scenes show more than just Ellie’s birthdays—they reveal how her thoughts and emotions have evolved. Let’s look at how the moth fits into Ellie’s story, and what it tells us about her mindset.
WHERE MOTHS APPEAR IN EPISODE 6
The first time moths are shown is during Ellie’s 15th birthday. Joel, now settled with Ellie in Jackson, gives her a restored guitar. What’s special is the pattern he carves into it—moths, inspired by the drawings all over Ellie’s wall. For Ellie, this is clearly a personal and creative symbol.
On her 16th birthday, after a fun trip to a museum filled with dinosaurs and spaceships, the mood shifts. Ellie and Joel walk home, and Ellie stops to stare at something. We soon see what caught her eye—moths circling around a dead tree stump. This moment stands out: Ellie doesn’t say much, but her silence speaks volumes. It’s clear the moths mean something more.
By her 17th birthday, Ellie has gone a step further. She covers an old burn mark—one she gave herself to hide her bite scar—with a tattoo of a moth. When Joel asks why she chose that design, Ellie just says, “It’s kind of symbolic.” Joel assumes it’s about change and growth. “That would be a butterfly,” Ellie’s therapist later corrects him. A moth, she explains, symbolizes death.
THE MEANING OF THE MOTHS
This conversation about the moth’s symbolism is a key turning point. Up until now, viewers might assume the moth stands for transformation, like a butterfly. But when the therapist says a moth represents death, the message becomes clearer.
For Ellie, death is something she can’t escape. In Season 1, she tells Joel about Riley—the first person she killed. After Riley came Tess, then Sam, and many more. The people around Ellie die, one by one. She survives, but it leaves her scarred. The moth, which quietly follows her through the years, reflects that constant presence of death in her life.
But the moth is more than just a symbol of death—it also represents Ellie’s inner struggle. On a sheet of paper filled with moth drawings in her room, the words “You have a greater purpose” are written across. This ties in directly with the truth Joel finally tells her: saving Ellie meant losing a chance at a cure for humanity.
Ellie’s reaction to Joel’s confession is full of pain. “Then I was supposed to die!” she screams. “That was my purpose.” In this moment, everything makes sense. The moths, death, and her search for meaning all come together. Ellie believes her life was meant to mean something—to save others—and Joel took that chance away.
WHY ELLIE DRAWS MOTHS
Drawing moths may be Ellie’s way of trying to control the chaos around her. She has no control over who dies or why she was spared. But by focusing on the moth, she creates a symbol that represents her pain, her guilt, and her need for purpose. The tattoo on her arm hides a scar, but it also shows she’s trying to accept that part of her past.
As the episode closes, we see Ellie nearing the theater in Seattle. The moths don’t appear in this moment, but their presence has already shaped how we understand her. From birthday gifts to tattoos, the moth quietly reflects Ellie’s emotional journey.
In THE LAST OF US, no detail is random. The moth is small but meaningful, capturing Ellie’s relationship with death, grief, and the purpose she feels she’s lost. As Season 2 continues, the moth may serve as a constant reminder of what she’s endured—and what she believes she was meant to do.
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