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Chapter 5
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Demon Copperhead, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Exploitation
Class, Social Hierarchy, and Stereotypes
Pain and Addiction
Toxic Masculinity
Community and Belonging
Summary
Analysis
The story of how Mariah Peggot, Maggot’s mom, ends up in prison starts with her falling for the wrong man, Romeo Blevins. Because Romeo is practically attractive enough to be a model, Mariah thinks he’s out of her league and feels like she’s won the lottery when he becomes interested in her. Mrs. Peggot warns Mariah about him and forbids her from seeing him. Mariah sees no other choice but to sneak around. When she becomes pregnant, she moves in with Romeo in his A-frame house outside Duffield. Romeo starts going out with other women and says Mariah should feel lucky she’s carrying his baby. When she has the baby, she tries to get Romeo to stay home more, but the two constantly argue.
The story of how Maggot’s mom ends up in prison puts the difficulties of Demon’s life in context. Through Mariah’s story, the novel argues that Demon’s circumstances are not exceptional. Instead, many people, including Maggot and the Peggot family, have similarly difficult family histories. This indicates how generally widespread many of the problems Demon faces are, in his community and perhaps throughout the region.
Themes
One night, Mariah says she’s going to call her sister June so she and the baby can leave. Romeo knocks her down and ties her hands together with the phone cord, drags her outside, and ties her to the deck. He finds his Ruger and puts it in her mouth. Eventually he gets bored and drives away before coming back two hours later, asking if Mariah is sorry. When she says yes, he unties her, and that passes as making up in their relationship. Things only get worse from there. Romeo gets into a habit of tying up Mariah, and he once leaves her tied up all night while the baby, Matty, cries.
Romeo’s violent treatment of Mariah shows the depths of his misogyny and toxic masculinity. Notably, Mariah first thought of Romeo as charming and handsome, qualities that hid his propensity toward violence. After Romeo abuses Mariah, he tells her to apologize, and they make up after she does, a dynamic that further illustrates the emotional manipulation to which Romeo subjects Mariah.
Themes
After that night, Mariah keeps a knife taped to her body to use if the situation with Romeo turns violent. After Romeo passes out one night, she slices his mouth on each side until she feels his jawbone with the blade then carves a heart into his chest. She grabs Matty and leaves. She doesn’t think Romeo will press charges because he only got what was coming for him. But when the case goes to trial, he “gaslight[s] the jury like [he’s] gaslighted Mariah.” He says Matty isn’t his child—he was only taking pity on a single mother when he let her live with him, but then she turned out to be clingy and unstable. The more Mariah tells the truth on the stand—about being tied to the deck all night, for example—the “crazier” she seems. The jury sides with Romeo, and Mariah is sentenced to 12 years in prison.
The end of the story of how Mariah ends up in prison underlines the novel’s themes about institutional exploitation. In this case, the novel shows that Mariah’s story isn’t just the story of one person facing misogyny and gender-based violence. Instead, the story shows the institutionalized misogyny of a justice system that punishes the victim and survivor of horrific crimes instead of the perpetrator of those crimes.
Themes
