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Chapter 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Fever 1793, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Freedom and Independence
Mothers, Daughters, and Familial Love
Disaster and Human Nature
Ingenuity, Ambition, and Survival
Summary
Analysis
Mattie is in disbelief over Polly’s death. She remembers playing dolls with Polly when they were girls and singing songs together while they churned butter. Mattie and Mother go inside and tell Eliza what happened. Mother says it’s strange that Polly, a robust girl, sickened and died so quickly. She tells Mattie they can be grateful that Polly didn’t suffer long. She feels Mattie’s forehead and asks her how she’s feeling, fretting that the heat isn’t healthy.
Polly’s sudden death rocks Mattie and, given Polly’s previous good health, this death foreshadows how merciless the fever will be. Mother, sensing this, immediately worries about Mattie, showing how much Mattie is always at the forefront of her mind.
Themes
When Mattie wants to take food to the Logans and attend Polly’s funeral, Mother refuses. Mattie calls her mother “horrid,” and Mother demands an apology. Mattie notices how “pinch-faced and harsh” her mother looks and she remembers the days, back when Father was alive, that Mother was laughing and gentle. But now Mother is “a tired and bitter captain” whom Mattie must obey. Mattie apologizes for her words.
Mother fears fever exposure for Mattie, but all Mattie can see is that her mother isn’t letting her do what she wants, which fans her resentment once again. She knows Mother has had a difficult time supporting her alone, but her sympathy is still secondary to her bitterness at having to obey.
Themes
