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Part Five, Chapter Eleven
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Identity, Ethnicity, and Masculinity
Silence and Trauma vs. Communication
Family and Coming of Age
Intellectualism and Emotion vs. Physical Strength
Summary
Analysis
Dad and Ari drive in silence until Dad says that Mom is sad. He lets Ari drive, and Ari apologizes for his behavior last night, saying that he doesn’t know what to do with his feelings and doesn’t feel normal. He says he’s angry and Dad suggests they talk more, but Ari points out that neither of them are good talkers. Dad says that Ari is good with words, but just not when they talk. They laugh that they’re glad Mom makes them talk, and Dad lights a cigarette. Ari thinks about Legs, Dante, and why he didn’t look at Dante’s sketches. He wonders if Bernardo was close to Aunt Ophelia, why Ophelia wasn’t close with the family, and why he lived with her. He asks Dad.
Aunt Ophelia becomes a convenient starting point for Ari and Dad to connect and talk about their family. Though it’s horrible that they only are able to have this conversation as Ophelia is dying, and not with Ophelia herself, this also makes the case that tragedy and trauma don’t have to be damaging in the long run. Instead, if people choose to reach out to each other in times like this, they can actually grow closer and become better prepared for the next tragedy.
Themes
Dad takes a minute to answer but says that Ari went to Aunt Ophelia’s during Bernardo’s trial. They were all having a hard time and Bernardo didn’t want Ari to remember the trial. Ari says that it didn’t solve anything, but Dad says that it was complicated—Mom had a breakdown, so Ari stayed with Ophelia for nine months. Mom acted like Bernardo died after he was sentenced. Though she gradually came back to herself, Dad still wonders if it’s over. Dad cries and Ari pulls over. Dad gets out and Ari leaves him alone, but then decides to stand with him. He thinks that leaving each other alone is hurting them ,and tells Dad that he sometimes hates him for pretending that Bernardo is dead. Dad apologizes.
Learning that Mom had a breakdown during Bernardo’s trial makes it clear to Ari that Mom is a real person who has, at points in her life, been seriously unwell. When Dad confides in Ari that he sometimes wonders if it’s over, he shows that even if these events feel far away to Ari, they’re actually still very close for Mom and Dad. This allows Mom and Dad’s silence to start making more sense to Ari, which in turn helps him understand their motivations for acting this way.
Themes
