Previous
Part 5: Caitlin, January 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 Zimbabwe, Martin is surprised to receive a letter from Caitlin’s mom, telling him about the U.S. college admissions process. Martin already knows a little bit because he has a friend named Wallace who has taken the SATs and is going abroad. He makes an arrangement with the school headmaster to borrow his computer after hours to help with his correspondence to Caitlin and his college application process. He sends his first email to Caitlin.
As someone who didn’t grow up learning about the U.S. education system, Martin is at a disadvantage. He doesn’t even know what’s required to apply, but Caitlin’s mom tries to minimize his disadvantage by explaining things to him. This illustrates how, although the U.S. education system likes to put forward the idea that it is merit-based, there are facets of it that make it more difficult for some students to succeed.
Themes
