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Chapter 5
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret., which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Puberty
Friendship, Fitting In, and Social Pressure
Religion
Family Conflict
Summary
Analysis
After school the next day, Mr. Benedict calls Margaret up to discuss her getting-to-know-you answers. He asks why she hates religious holidays. Margaret regrets writing that—now she’s definitely not normal. She laughs and says she doesn’t really hate them, but Mr. Benedict isn’t convinced. Margaret raises her right eyebrow, which usually distracts people. It doesn’t work. So Margaret says that since she doesn’t belong to a religion, the holidays aren’t special for her. She explains that her parents don’t have a religion either; Margaret is supposed to choose when she grows up, if she wants to. Satisfied, Mr. Benedict dismisses her. Margaret hopes she seemed normal enough. She’s not used to being asked about her religion.
Now that Margaret knows how important religion is to people in Farbrook, it seems like a total faux pas to have written that she hates religious holidays. When she wrote that yesterday, Margaret didn’t know how to fit in here. When Margaret nevertheless tells Mr. Benedict the truth, it shows that she isn’t willing to tell lies in order to pretend to fit in. She wants to be normal, but not if she has to appear to be someone she isn’t.
Themes
When Grandma calls that night, she reveals that she got a subscription to the Lincoln Center for herself and Margaret. They’ll see one concert per month—Mom and Dad won’t be able to say no, since this is “culture.” Fortunately, the first concert isn’t going to mess with “Bra Day.” On Saturday, Moose cuts the lawn while Dad sulks. Margaret watches Moose and thinks he has nice teeth and a nice smile. She pretends to read but watches him instead. He’d be the top entry in her Boy Book—if Nancy didn’t hate him.
Margaret understands that when it comes to her friendship with Nancy, the most important thing is to please Nancy. In this case, that means keeping her crush on Moose a secret. So in some cases, Margaret refuses to hide who she is, while in others, she hides her feelings in order to earn approval.
Themes
After lunch, Mom tells Dad that she and Margaret are going shopping, and she mentions that they need a second car. They head for a Lord & Taylor, and Margaret makes sure to wear her loafers without socks. The saleslady in the ladies’ lingerie department sends Mom and Margaret to the teen department. Margaret wants to die of shame. In the teen department, Margaret looks at the displays of bras, panties, and matching slips—all she ever wears are white underpants.
Getting a bra symbolizes a step into adulthood, so it’s a big deal for Margaret—that’s why she won’t be caught dead wearing socks with her loafers on such a special occasion. However, the occasion turns mortifying when Margaret is sent away from the ladies’ department and has to shop in the teens’ department. It reminds Margaret that though she wants to feel grown-up, she’s still small and undeveloped.
Themes
Mom tells the saleslady that Margaret needs a bra. Margaret hates it when the saleslady calls her “dear” and asks her to step up to get measured. But the lady then puts a selection of bras on the counter. She suggests the Gro-Bra, which will “grow with” Margaret. She leads Margaret and Mom to a dressing room with several bras to try.
The Gro-Bra reads like a training bra, a type of bra designed to help people learn to wear bras, but that doesn’t offer support. So it represents an in-between stage of growing up: Margaret will get to feel mature for wearing a bra, but the bra also isn’t too adult for her.
Themes
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Margaret undresses and puts on the first bra, but she can’t fasten it herself. Mom fastens it for her and asks Margaret how it feels. Margaret doesn’t know, so Mom helps her out of it and into the second one. Margaret wonders how long it’ll take to learn to fasten her own bra. The second bra is softer and Margaret likes how it feels; the third is itchy lace and Mom deems it “impractical.” When the saleslady knocks, Mom tells her that they’ll take three of the soft bra.
It's unsettling when Margaret can’t do the clasps on the bras herself—it makes her feel childish, even as she’s going through an experience designed to make her feel adult. It’s also important to note that Mom is very no-nonsense about this experience, which gives Margaret the space to come to her own conclusions and doesn’t heighten her embarrassment.
Themes
At the counter, Margaret sees Janie Loomis and her mother. Janie turns red and tells Margaret that she’s here for winter pajamas. Margaret notices the bras laid out on the counter in front of Janie and says that she’s also here to buy winter pajamas.
Margaret desperately wants to wear a bra, but she still found the shopping experience mortifying. Janie seems to feel the same way. Margaret shows she’s a good friend when she goes along with Janie’s excuse that she’s buying pajamas instead of bras.
Themes
