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Chapter 21
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Outcasts United, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Refugees, Discrimination, and Resilience
Community and Teamwork vs. Division
Leadership and Respect
Discipline, Dedication, and Success
Summary
Analysis
Generose takes a night-shift job at a chicken processing plant, which runs from late afternoon to 2 a.m. Far worse than the actual work is the idea of leaving Alex, Bien, and Ive home alone to take care of baby Alyah. This task falls mostly to Alex, who hurries home after practice so that Generose can leave for work. He feeds her, then makes dinner for Bien and Ive while they do their homework. Afterward, he cleans the kitchen.
St. John continues to describe life for the refugees in America in order to show their drive in the face of difficult choices. Alex takes on an immense amount of responsibility in taking care of his siblings, but this is a necessity in order to help keep his family afloat.
Themes
One evening after practice, Alex comes home tired and starts making dinner. He places hot dogs in a pan, then puts Alyah’s milk in the microwave and stirs in powdered baby food. Alyah starts to cry for dinner, and Alex hurries to feed her, placing her in the crook of his arm and patiently giving her spoonfuls of food.
Alex’s patience and responsibility calls back to Luma’s earlier statement that she can’t baby her players, because they will not be babied at home. This is very true of Alex, who in fact takes on the role of a parent in feeding his younger siblings.
Themes
Suddenly, smoke starts to roll into the living room. Alex props Alyah against the sofa and runs to the kitchen. The hot dogs had melted into black goo. Alex grabs the scalding skillet and drops it on the back porch to keep the smoke out. Bien and Ive appear at the kitchen door. Ive asks what that was supposed to be. “Dinner,” Bien replies.
Although Alex was able to contain the issue, the incident provokes questions about the different dangers that could befall children when they’re home alone. This again highlights the risks that Generose and other refugee mothers have to take when they balance working with taking care of their children.
Themes
In the Ziaty home, it takes a few days for Beatrice to learn that Mandela had quit the Fugees. She starts to worry for him—without soccer, he could get into trouble, or he could get mugged or shot. A few days later, Beatrice overhears Mandela tell Jeremiah that he wants to talk to Luma. Beatrice tries to inquire why he wants to talk to her, but he shuts her out. However, he does hang his Fugees jersey on his wall.
The fact that Mandela hangs his Fugees jersey does provide a hint that he misses the community that he had abandoned. He is trapped, however, in a struggle between wanting to be with his friends who had quit and wanting to strive to make himself and his team better, as Kanue and Natnael had.
Themes
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