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Chapter 19
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in This Is Where It Ends, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Gun Violence
Community and Tragedy
Family and Sibling Relationships
Change, Uncertainty, and Growing Up
Abuse
Summary
Analysis
The auditorium door opens, and Autumn sees a group of SWAT officers sweeping through the aisles. She wants to show Matt that they’re safe, but his lips are turning blue and he can barely speak. Unable to understand his murmurs, Autumn shouts for help, but an officer orders her to exit the building, saying that paramedics will only come in once it’s safe. Autumn is appalled that she’s expected to leave Matt behind; she also doesn’t want to leave the building while Sylvia and Tyler are still inside. Despite what her brother did, Matt is right in saying that Tyler will always be her family. None of the other students look at her as they line up to leave the school.
The arrival of the police comes as a relief, but their inability to save injured students like Matt is another reminder that Autumn can no longer depend on adults to swoop in and fix every problem. By deciding to stay inside the school, Autumn both affirms her love for Sylvia and honors the sibling relationship that has defined her life, even though it’s now been changed forever.
Themes
Claire listens to this interaction over the phone, realizing for the first time that Matt is seriously injured and can’t leave the school. Matt says that he didn’t want her to worry about him, but admits that he feels cold and sick. He says that Tyler didn’t shoot him “on purpose,” and Claire feels sick thinking that Matt is protecting her ex-boyfriend the same way she once did. Trying to comfort her brother, she reassures him that the police will be back for him soon and the doctors will fix him up. She promises to take him to the beach when their sister Tracy returns from deployment. Claire says that she’s always admired him for being so creative and brave, but Matt doesn’t respond, and she realizes she can’t hear him breathing anymore.
On a personal level, Claire and Matt’s desire to see the best in others is laudable. However, it also reflects the community’s habit of denying circumstances that would be unpleasant to address – like Tyler’s aggressive behavior or the family abuse that, in part, causes it. This moment suggests that while everyone should strive for tolerance and empathy, apologizing for abusers only perpetuates a negative cycle.
Themes
Looking out the window, Fareed concludes that the roof is safe. He helps Sylvia over the windowsill and walks off across the roof to look for the police. Still inside the building, Tomás wraps an arm around Sylvia and asks if she’s afraid, but she says she’s fine now. Tomás hugs her and says that he loves her.
Tomás and Sylvia have become increasingly close over the course of the day, but their inability to address Sylvia’s rape indicates that there is still a limit to their emotional intimacy.
Themes
To himself, Tomás thinks that he would do anything to see Sylvia smile again. He apologizes for fighting with her so much over the last year, and she immediately forgives him. He confesses that she’s not the only one hiding things: even though it’s always assumed that he won’t go to college, he secretly wants to study archeology and learn about their heritage.
Here, Tomás shows that his fractured relationship with Sylvia has been harmful to him as well. Just as he could have supported her better, being able to talk open about their experience might have given her a chance to support him as well.
Themes
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Tomás asks Sylvia to tell their Mamá what he did during the shooting, about all the pranks they played together as children, and that he had great friends and was happy. Before Sylvia realizes what’s happening, Tomás lets go of her hands and shuts the window, turning back into the school. He knows that Fareed and Sylvia need time to escape, and he can give that to them.
Tomás is trying to make a heroic gesture, but by refusing to consult his sister about his actions, he’s robbing her of the agency and equality she wants in their relationship. Here Tomás shows that the cultural value of taking heroic action (especially when the actor is a man) can overcome even genuine intimacy between loved ones.
Themes
CJ reports via Twitter that the auditorium is almost empty. It seems like everything that happened was a dream—or at least she wishes that were the case.
The contrast between perceived normalcy and actual chaos hints at the long journey the community faces before recovering from this crisis.
Themes
