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Chapter 8
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in That Was Then, This Is Now, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Humility, Responsibility, and Coming of Age
Brotherhood, Loyalty, and Betrayal
Rules and Consequences
Violence and Revenge
Love and Selflessness
Summary
Analysis
The next day, Mark takes Bryon to the hospital, where Bryon gets 15 stitches in his face and has his ribs taped. Bryon thinks back to what Mike said about not hating the guys who beat him up. Similarly, Mike doesn’t hate the Shepards. When he tries to explain this to Mark, Mark gets upset: he knows Bryon got beaten up because Mark cut off Angela’s hair. He says that if the Shepards had killed Bryon, it would have been his fault. Bryon reiterates that he’s just sick of fighting and the cycle of people beating each other up.
Hinton connects Bryon’s perspective to Mike’s earlier resolution not to hate the people who beat him up. While both boys know that nonviolence might not always break the cycle of fighting, the alternative only perpetuates it.This is also a rare moment in which Mark appreciates the consequences of his actions for others, and he takes responsibility for what happened to Bryon. However, this only reinforces Bryon’s earlier point that Mark’s worldview is essentially limited to caring about himself and Bryon.
Themes
At home, Bryon’s mother is shocked to see Bryon so beat up. She tells him to go to bed immediately, which Bryon is glad to do. Mark also calls Cathy for Bryon while Bryon sleeps; when Bryon wakes up, Cathy is sitting at his side, crying. Bryon says that he’s really glad that she’s there and tells her that he loves her. He is relieved to say it, thinking that it wasn’t as hard to say as he thought. Bryon assures her that he’ll be fine in a few days, and he also tells her that he has a lead on M&M and that they can look for him together. Cathy agrees and kisses him tenderly.
In another act of selflessness, Bryon finally tells Cathy that he loves her—he puts himself in a vulnerable position in order to tell her how much he cares about her and make her feel good. This gesture shows how much Bryon has matured. Through the whole book, he has lied for selfish gain and has been unable to express his genuine sentiments for people—and even while his actions have been honest, his words rarely have been. Here, though, Bryon is finally able to be sincere and humble.
Themes
After a few days, when Bryon is feeling better, he takes Charlie’s car and drives to the cemetery where Charlie is buried. When he finds Charlie’s grave, he thanks Charlie aloud for letting him use his car and for saving his life. Bryon wishes that he’d said these things when Charlie was still alive.
Like telling Cathy that he loves her, Bryon’s ability to finally thank Charlie underscores his new willingness to take responsibility and be humble rather than remain self-centered.
Themes
Two nights later, Cathy and Bryon go out to search for M&M at the hippie house. When they arrive, they learn that M&M has been on a bad trip—all day, he’s had been trying to jump out the window. Cathy grows worried, and they find M&M in a bedroom upstairs, looking thin, dirty, and very suspicious. M&M starts freaking out and describes a hallucination in which he was inside of his stomach and a bunch of spiders crawled out and started chewing on him; he screamed and screamed, but no one came to help him. M&M is shaking, and Bryon says that they should take him to a hospital. Cathy calls Mr. Carlson from another room, and when she returns Bryon carries M&M down the stairs and into his car.
M&M’s bad drug trip is a turning point not only in his life, but in Bryon’s as well. In observing the horrors of what M&M is experiencing, Bryon understands that breaking the rules and acting irresponsibly can have dire consequences—even on kids. Not only could M&M have been arrested for his drug use, but his trip also nearly spurred him to commit suicide.
Themes
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Cathy drives to the hospital while Bryon tries to calm M&M and hold onto him. M&M screams in terror, wondering where he is. Bryon is sick to his stomach, feeling that M&M is as much his little brother as Cathy’s. When they arrive at the hospital, Mr. Carlson is already there. He carries M&M into the building as M&M babbles about the spiders.
Bryon’s protective instinct toward M&M demonstrates how love has transformed Bryon from a selfish teenager into supportive partner. His love for Cathy not only makes him want to be more selfless for her—it also makes him want to support Cathy’s loved ones in any way he can.
Themes
