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Part 6: Martin, August 15, 2003
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in I Will Always Write Back, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Kindness and Generosity
Friendship
Family
Education
Summary
Analysis
At Caitlin’s wedding, Martin gives a speech about how he is grateful that she met her husband Dzmitry. Wallace is there too and also cheers. Martin was living in Manhattan when he heard that Caitlin was going to be marrying Dzmitry. Caitlin and Martin will share many milestones over the years: his MBA at Duke, her nursing degree, and the birth of her baby girl.
Caitlin’s wedding is one of the biggest milestones in her life, and the fact that Martin is there for it to give a speech, well after their pen pal relationship has ended, suggests that he has remained a stable part of her life. Though they no longer exchange letters, their continued relationship is also a testament to the power of letters.
Themes
Martin’s only regret is that his family from Zimbabwe can’t be there. He started sending money to them soon after arriving at Villanova and before he graduated, and he eventually saved enough to buy them a new house. He continues to send money home, even to this day. His sister, Lois, is the top of her class and also looking to go to college in the United States. Martin reflects on how one letter forever bound his family and Caitlin’s.
Although Martin has been successful in the United States, he also has made sacrifices—he isn’t able to see his family as often as he would like. Still, he continues to look out for them, and just as Wallace’s success inspired Martin’s journey to the U.S., Martin’s success seems like it could inspire Lois.
Themes
