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21. Friday: Campbell
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in My Sister’s Keeper, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Bodily Autonomy
Siblinghood
Parenthood
Control
Illness and Isolation
Summary
Analysis
Brian muses about how fire and hope are connected. In Greek mythology, Epimetheus made the animals and Prometheus made the humans, whose only good features were walking upright and using fire. Zeus took fire away from humans in anger, but Prometheus gave it back to them with the sun. Zeus chained Prometheus and had an eagle feed on his liver as punishment, then made the first woman, Pandora, to punish humanity. Pandora was given a box she was forbidden to open, but her curiosity got the best of her. Everything terrible escaped the box but hope, which is humanity’s only weapon against everything else.
Brian’s recounting of the myth of Prometheus illustrates the importance of hope in a terrible situation. Notably, the quality of hope is not a sense of certainty that things are going to work out, but the ability to hold onto the possibility that things will work out. In this way, the myth is in opposition to the desire to completely control everything: it acknowledges that when things are difficult, all you can do is hope for the best.
Themes
Campbell arrives at the station with Anna, and Brian welcomes him upstairs for coffee. Campbell asks Brian about Anna’s living situation and points out that Sara is Anna’s opposing counsel, which Brian takes as a warning that he shouldn’t talk to Campbell. Campbell says that it’s only an issue if Sara is still representing Brian, but Brian responds that Sara has never represented him—which Campbell suspects Sara does not understand. Brian explains that, although this lawsuit is important, it’s difficult to prioritize alongside Kate’s ordeal. He then tells Campbell that he’d like the two of them to speak without Sara around. Then, he confesses that he thinks Anna is right. Campbell asks if he’s willing to say this at the hearing, and Brian responds that he thinks he has to.
Brian’s offer to testify on Anna’s behalf is a major turning point in the novel, but not an unexpected one. Given Brian’s closeness to Anna and his many disagreements with Sara about Anna’s donations, his decision to switch to Anna is the natural culmination of his moral conflict as he tries to balance his concern for Kate and his concern for Anna. Even so, as Brian points out about having to prioritize Kate’s treatment, choosing to support Anna’s fight for bodily autonomy is not an easy decision, since it essentially means that Brian is dooming his other daughter.
Themes
Earlier in the morning, Paulie and Brian respond to a call in which a teenage boy is trying to revive his girlfriend, who has overdosed on something. The boy initially denies that they were using, but Brian tells him that they need to know what drug she overdosed on to correctly treat her. Eventually, they figure out that the girl needs Narcan, which Paulie begins to administer. The boy asks Brian if they’re going to call the cops, which enrages Brian; he pins the boy up against the wall and screams at him that he won’t get a second chance at life. Paulie gets him to step down, and he walks away to cool his temper. Paulie suggests that Brian take time off, but Brian says that when he’s not at work, he has to deal with his family.
Brian’s uncharacteristic rage at the boyfriend of the overdosed girl illustrates the intense emotional pressure he’s under. Given that Kate’s likely in her final days, it’s understandable that he would become irate at an individual he views as throwing their life away. However, considering that work is usually where Brian is able to maintain control over his life, his loss of temper suggests that his ability to escape his home life by staying at work is fraying away.
Themes
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Back with Campbell, Brian offers him a second cup of coffee, which Campbell declines. Brian tells Campbell not to worry about Anna, as Brian will make sure she’s taken care of. Campbell advises him to check in on matters at home, as well, since he just had to get Jesse released for stealing a judge’s car. Campbell then leaves without elaborating, forcing Brian to mull over this revelation.
Although Brian attempts to convince Campbell that he has a handle on his family, Campbell being the one to inform Brian about Jesse’s arrest shatters this illusion. The fact that Brian doesn’t know anything this shows just how severely the lines of communication among the Fitzgeralds have broken down.
Themes
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