Previous
Prologue
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The City We Became, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Cities and Gentrification
Community, Diversity, and Prejudice
Ethics and Nature
Beliefs, Concepts, and Stereotypes
Art
Abuse
Summary
Analysis
The avatar faints and then disappears. Paolo senses the city hasn’t died but “postpartum complications” have occurred. He calls an international number, suggests the situation resembles London’s, and wonders “how many.” The person on the other end tells him not to speculate, just to find them—and warns him New York is vulnerable. When Paolo asks where he should begin, the person suggests Manhattan.
The use of the phrase “postpartum complications”—a medical term referring to problems after childbirth—once again implicitly compares New York City to a living creature being born. The novel does not clarify who Paolo has called, how New York City’s situation resembles London’s, or “how many” of what Paolo is asking about—thus increasing the reader’s suspense.
Themes
