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Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Darius the Great Is Not Okay, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Friendship
Family
Persian Identity and Culture
Mental Health, Depression, and Connection
Bullying
Summary
Analysis
Of course, after the meal, men break out cards to play Rook. Darius sits in a corner and watches Dad play with Dayi Jamsheed, Dayi Soheil, and Babou. How is Dad able to just join in like that? Sohrab interrupts Darius’s thoughts to ask if he’s stuck thinking about something sad. Darius shrugs, but Sohrab drags Darius back outside; he won’t “let [Darius] be stuck anymore.” They join Darius’s male cousins, Parviz and Navid, at a table, and Parviz asks why Darius never said he played soccer. They smirk at how angry Ali-Reza was that he lost earlier, and Navid said he thought Ali-Reza’s family moved. Sohrab explains that the family couldn’t when Ali-Reza’s dad lost his job. Darius feels bad for Ali-Reza, even if he is a Soulless Minion of Orthodoxy.
Recall how in gym class, Darius was taunted when he tried to participate in the volleyball game. He’s had awful experiences trying to join in, so it’s unreal to him that Dad can just step in and play Rook. Still, though all three of these men have been casually mean to either Dad or Darius, they’re not bullies on the same level as Trent Bolger—they’re family, and they don’t really want to alienate Dad or Darius. Further, Darius is discovering that bullies have issues too. He can sympathize with Ali-Reza—he knows it’s hard when your dad loses their job—while still maintaining that Ali-Reza isn’t someone he wants to befriend.
Themes
Sohrab gives Parviz and Navid a play-by-play of his and Darius’s soccer game earlier, and he says lots of nice things about Darius—including that he’s Persian. Hearing this, Navid and Parviz decide it’s time for Darius to learn to play Rook. (Hopefully Darius won’t have to play with Dad when they get home.) Darius knows the basics already, but it turns out he’s terrible at the game. Still, his cousins give him pointers after each round, and Darius has fun. Finally, Sohrab and Khanum Rezaei leave, and Mamou pulls Darius into a big hug. He wishes he could somehow take her hugs home with him.
It’s significant that in Darius’s mind, one of the nicest things Sohrab can say is that Darius is Persian. This makes Darius feel like he fits and belongs here. His cousins, though, take this as a reason to make Darius even more Persian by teaching him a classic Persian card game. Importantly, nobody makes Darius feel bad for not being great at the game off the bat. The point, this suggests, is that Darius spend time with his friend and cousins; that they’re playing Rook (and therefore are being stereotypically Persian) is kind of beside the point.
Themes
When Darius passes Laleh’s bedroom door and sees that she’s asleep, he wishes Dad wasn’t playing Rook. They could maybe watch some Star Trek. But it seems like both Darius and Dad have found their places, and they’re pretty far apart. In his room, Darius finds the new cleats that Dayi Soheil picked up for Sohrab. They’re green Adidas, and they’re perfect. He wants to give them to Sohrab now, but Sohrab said he liked sharing his cleats. So, maybe Darius will save them as a going-away gift. Mom enters and says she loves to see Darius and Sohrab together. As she hugs Darius, Darius wishes he could stay here and go to school with Sohrab and play soccer. He’s never had a friend like Sohrab, who understands what it’s like to be ostracized for being different. Maybe Sohrab’s place used to be empty, too.
Darius has had several positive experiences with friends and family members over the last few days, so possibly working on his relationship with Dad begins to sound more desirable to Darius. However, for now, Darius sees letting Dad have his fun with Babou and Darius’s uncles as the most respectful course of action. Then, Darius acknowledges how powerful and meaningful it is for him to have finally made a friend. Sohrab makes it seem like it’d be fine to pick up and move to a country where Darius doesn’t speak the language, if it means that Darius will have daily contact with someone who understands and loves him.
Themes
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