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Summer: November
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Wonder, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Difficulty of Kindness
Independence and Growing Up
Status and Bullying
Identity
Parenting and Guidance
Summary
Analysis
Summer warns her mom about August's face, but Summer's mom still looks surprised when August walks through the front door. August and Summer work on their Egyptian projects for a while and then hang out in the living room. August finds a photo of Summer with her dad, and is surprised to see that he's black and was in the military. Summer explains that he died a few years ago. She wonders what happens when people die, and suggests that maybe people don't go to heaven. She thinks that people might be born again and get a chance at a do-over.
When Summer suggests that people get a chance to do life over again, it shows that she understands that actions are some of the most important ways to define a person's identity. She recognizes that she could be a number of different people simply by making different choices.
Themes
August thinks for a moment and confirms that a person would be born as an entirely new person. He's thrilled that in his next life, he'll get a new face. Awkwardly, Summer asks August what exactly is wrong with his face. August shrugs and explains that he has mandibulofacial dysostosis and another unpronounceable syndrome. The combination is so rare that there's no name for it, but he says that he's a medical wonder.
When August can barely pronounce even half of his syndromes, it shows that part of his identity is still something he cannot fully understand—as Via said, he has to use words he doesn't understand to describe something he doesn't fully understand.
Themes
