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Part One, Chapter Nine
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
One moonless night, Mr. Quintana and Mrs. Quintana take Ari and Dante to the desert to use Dante’s new telescope. Dante and Mr. Quintana sing along horribly with the Beatles and Ari wonders what Dad would do if he kissed him on the cheek. In the desert, Ari thinks it’s very dark and thinks about how much Dante knows about light pollution. He watches and drinks a Coke, even though he doesn’t like it. Mrs. Quintana says that Dante has told her that Ari is very smart. Ari insists that he’s not as smart as Dante, but Dante interrupts and says that smart people are “perfect shits.” This offends Mrs. Quintana, and to make matters worse, Mr. Quintana tells Dante to curse only when he’s not around his mom.
Again, the fact that Ari dwells on what it’d be like to have a more open relationship with Dad speaks to his instinctive understanding that open communication is healthier and superior to the silence that permeates his family. His sense of wonder in regards to how much Dante knows about the natural world also reminds the reader of what a budding intellectual Ari is; he thinks that knowing things like this is good and presumably wants to emulate Dante, at least to some degree.
Themes
The argument ends when Dante spots something in the telescope. They take turns and when Ari looks, Dante explains what Ari is seeing. Ari doesn’t listen; instead, he feels like the world is bigger and closer than he thought possible. It’s beautiful, overwhelming, and makes Ari feel like he matters. Dante whispers that he’s going to discover all the secrets of the universe. Ari asks what he’s going to do with the secrets, and Dante says he’s going to change the world. Ari believes him. That night, they sleep in Dante’s backyard and listen to his parents talk inside, Mr. Quintana in English and Mrs. Quintana in Spanish. Ari says that his parents do that too. He and Dante look for stars, but there’s too much light pollution.
Getting to see the stars up close through a telescope feeds Ari’s desire to know more about the world around him, and Ari and Dante’s whispered conversation builds intimacy on a foundation of intellectualism and curiosity about the world. This situates curiosity, friendship, and intellectual pursuits as related ideas—if Ari can figure out how to combine all three as he moves through the world, coming of age and figuring out who he is will become increasingly easier.
Themes
