LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Looking for Alaska, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
How to Live and Die
Mystery and the Unknown
Loyalty and Forgiveness
Memory and Memorial
Identity
Mischief
Summary
Analysis
Everyone returns to campus. Alaska suggests that they need to time an attack on Kevin with a “pre-prank” that will trick the Eagle into thinking that the yearly prank on the school has already happened. She decides that she, Miles, the Colonel, Takumi, and Lara, whom Miles hasn’t spoken to since he threw up on her, will spend the weekend in the barn at the edge of campus. She’s not sure what the prank is yet, but she tells Miles that she and the Colonel will come up with one.
Alaska decides to prank Kevin to get back at him for flooding her room, but also for covering Miles in duct tape and throwing him in the lake. Even though this decision is based on Miles’ experience, she will not let Miles participate in the planning of the prank. She does, however, convince Lara to join the group as a favor to Miles.
Active
Themes
Miles is annoyed at Alaska for leaving him out. It’s happened before, but Miles thought that it would be different after Thanksgiving. He thinks about the fact that he never had to deal with any of these emotions when he was back in Florida, and decides that he’s not going to care about Alaska anymore.
Miles continues to have conversations with himself in which he doubts Alaska’s ability to be a good friend. Nonetheless, he continues to find himself unable to stay away from her.