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Chapter 52
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Unwind, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Inequality, Injustice, and the Law
Anger, Violence, and Radicalization
Activism, Compassion, and Atonement
Morality and Perspective
Summary
Analysis
Connor wants to lash out, but he knows that’s what they want him to do and he knows that it would devastate Risa if he were unwound. He’s a celebrity in his dormitory and spends his time trying to dispel rumors, but he’s unsuccessful. Connor becomes friends with a boy named Dalton, who explains that everyone wishes they’d done what Connor did. The boys admit they’re scared, and Dalton says that he’s been at Happy Jack for six months because he plays in the band on the roof of the Chop Shop, where unwinding takes place.
Dalton’s suggestion that everyone wishes they’d put up a fight like Connor indicates that whether Connor likes it or not, he truly has become a figure around whom others can rally. This turns him into an activist no matter his thoughts on the matter, as it means that he has the ability to steer his new companions in the direction of either compassionate activism or violence.
Themes
In the morning, Connor plays volleyball. Staffers stand around with clipboards to take notes on everyone’s athleticism and Roland, on the opposite team, spikes the ball into a staffer’s face. The game suddenly pauses as a group of kids wearing white passes by the court. One kid tells Connor that the kids in white are tithes and think they’re better than everyone else. The staff don’t help, as they refer to the non-tithe residents as “Terribles.” As Connor turns back to his game, he thinks he sees Lev’s face but reasons it’s just his imagination.
The ways in which the tithes and the Terribles are treated differently again shows how easy it is to manipulate sentiment by manipulating language.
Themes
