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Part 5: Martin, August 2002
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
In Pennsylvania, Caitlin is excited to hear about Wallace, because he is proof that someone from Zimbabwe can make it to an American university.
Wallace proved for Martin that it was possible for a boy from rural Zimbabwe to make it to the United States, and he does the same for Caitlin.
Themes
Damon is one year older than Caitlin but has no interest in leaving for college. He doesn’t like that Caitlin spends so much time studying, causing the two of them to argue.
Damon is one of the things still keeping Caitlin connected to her hometown. While his disdain for education seems to suggest narrow-mindedness (or perhaps insecurity that Caitlin will leave him), it is likely also true that he doesn’t have quite as much to gain from college as a smart but impoverished student like Martin.
Themes
