Educated: Chapter 20 Summary & Analysis

Charles is Tara’s first real, true friend from “that other world”—the world her father has been trying to “protect” her from all her life. Charles is Mormon, but not particularly devout, and more interested in sports and music than “the End of Days.” Charles is weirded out by Mother’s constant muscle-testing and the smell of “rotted plants” that permeates the Westover home—yet he clearly cares for Tara, and hangs out with her almost every day.

Dad tells Tara that she’s becoming “uppity.” He begins coming up with strange, meaningless tasks for her at the junkyard. As Dad’s cruelty towards Tara increases, so does Shawn’s. Tara notices that both Shawn and Dad think she needs to be “dragged through time” and reminded of who she is. Shawn begins calling Tara horrible nicknames like “wench,” “Wilbur,” and “nigger.” None of these nicknames are new, but now that Tara has been to college and learned about the history of slavery, Jim Crow, segregation, and racism in America, she is particularly upset by Shawn’s casual use of the word “nigger.” Once Shawn realizes how much the cruel and racist nickname bothers Tara, he uses it nonstop. Something within Tara begins to shift as she realizes how ignorant her family is—and how ignorant they have tried, and are still trying, to make her.