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Chapter 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Tell Me Three Things, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Blended Families
Intimacy and Growing Up
Wealth, Fitting In, and Bullying
Home
Friendship
Summary
Analysis
Jessie settles on a bench and tells herself it’s not so bad; people are mean everywhere. She tries to focus on the sunny weather and realizes that while she’d normally roll her eyes that everyone wears designer sunglasses, they need them. Most of all, Jessie misses her best friend Scarlett, who can come up with biting comebacks on the fly. Jessie wishes she knew more about how this world works as the blonde girls walk past, giggling. One asks if “she” is for real and calls attention to a scrunchie, clearly making fun of Jessie. The girl is perfectly beautiful.
Attempting to rationalize bullying as something that happens everywhere is a way for Jessie to try to make sense of her uncomfortable new situation. What she doesn’t yet entirely understand is that because of the wealthy student body at Wood Valley, the bullying here takes place on an entirely different level than elsewhere—and because Jessie doesn’t have the wealth to fit in, she’s a prime target for these bullies.
Themes
Jessie’s face burns and she tries not to cry. She texts Scarlett that everyone here is size 0 or 00. Scarlett refuses to assure Jessie she’s not fat and reminds Jessie to not “go L.A. on [her].” Jessie says she’d have to talk to people to do that and snaps a selfie for Scarlett. Scarlett tells her to take out the scrunchie and asks who the attractive guy behind her is. Jessie squints at the selfie and sees the Batman in it. She deletes the photo.
What Scarlett wants is for Jessie to not change. While this is understandable, this doesn’t necessarily help Jessie cope—if Jessie is to even get through a single day at Wood Valley without crying, she’s going to have to adapt in some way to her new surroundings.
Themes
