Analysis: Metacognitive Reader Section
The book started out with the birth of Phoebe and Paul Henry, twins of Norah and David Henry. When David discovered that Phoebe had signs of down syndrome, he asked the nurse, Caroline, to take her away to an institution of his recommendation. This action is motivated by David's childhood experience of having a sibling with down syndrome and seeing the negative effects of the burden on his mother. David didn't want his wife, Norah, to go through the same pain, so he sends Phoebe away and tells Norah that Phoebe was a stillborn. This is an example of David's flawed character. Though he has a somewhat good motive--trying to protect his wife from pain--his action still shows deception and control. David doesn't even give his wife a choice in the matter because he believed that his decision was the right decision. He didn't think of the possible consequences of his actions and only thought of how much better Norah's life would be because she'd get to raise one healthy child instead of one healthy child and a disabled child. Personally, I was incredibly disappointed in David for doing this to his wife. Norah should have been given a choice, since she would be the one primarily raising the children. And instead of getting the joy of two children, Norah has to deal with grief from the supposed death of one of her babies. Here, I also noticed a plot hole: how did David fake Phoebe's death? Wouldn't they need the baby's corpse for the casket, or did the mortician think that it was perfectly normal to put an empty casket in the ground?
Caroline's character also confused me. I was surprised that she was willing to take on the responsibility of raising a child as a single mother, which was difficult for women at the time. Even though Caroline had no attachment to the baby, she still doesn't choose to leave it in the institution, even though she has no responsibility to take care of Phoebe. Again, it was very difficult for single women to raise children in this time period, so either Caroline has a very good and compassionate heart and a very strong conscious, or this is a plot hole.
What really stuck out to me, was that after their lives separated and Caroline ran away from the town to start her own life, Phoebe was still, in a way, connected to David. Caroline had met up with David before she left and he had asked her to keep in touch and let him know how Phoebe fairs every once in a while. In my opinion, this is what caused David and Norah to grow apart. Norah didn't know about Phoebe and Caroline's connection to David, but David knew about it all. He was aware that his daughter was still alive and he knew that when his wife grieved for her daughter she was grieving because of him. I think perhaps that David was grieving too, but in a different way. There really was no right action for him to do after he send Phoebe away. If he had told Norah "hey, I lied about our baby's death" then that would have caused an even bigger rift in their marriage, and Norah would have wanted to take Phoebe away from Caroline, which would've hurt Caroline emotionally. If David was still present in Phoebe's life, un-benowest to Norah, then that would have just been selfish and wrong. David basically had no good action to do. Six years after their twins were born David had picked up the hobby of photography but it wasn't because he actually enjoyed it. David used it as an excuse to have his own dark room and developing studio within his home to lock away the pictures of Phoebe and the letters from Caroline. This actually made me really mad because even though he couldn't do anything to make the situation better he still chose to keep Phoebe away from his wife. in my opinion, if Norah wasn't able to be with her daughter then David shouldn't have had any connection to her either. David had also requested to Caroline that he be able to meet Phoebe and introduce her to her brother Paul. I felt uneasy wen David made that request because he wouldn't let Norah know Phoebe was alive and yet he was willing to let his son. I believe its Norah's right to know her daughter is alive and David's continuous decision to ignore that right only made me more upset as the book continued on.
Towards the end of the book the Henrys' David and Norah, had grown further and further apart- Norah had taken a trip to Aruba and had an affair with someone while there. I don't believe in cheating on your partners, but i can understand why Norah felt the need and the freedom to do so. David had shut himself up more and more as time went on and barely spent any time with his family. Of the time that was spent with Paul and Norah he was disconnected. David ad his wife also had different opinions on what Paul should do with his life which led to even more friction between the couple. Norah had attached herself so deeply into Paul that she wanted him to have whatever he wanted in the world. David wanted a practical life for Paul and even though his son was a successful guitarist he opposed his wife many times about his son going to Julliard. Friction continues between the two and eventually David start to think about confessing to Norah. At this point i had regained some hope in David, thinking that he would go through with it. Unfortunately he died due to a heart attack and wasn't able to tell her. While sorting through David's belongings Norah discovered Phoebe whom was hidden from her all these years and was finally able to meet Phoebe. Caroline brought her down and allowed Norah to met her daughter and Paul to be reunited with his sister. When I read this i thought of it as a consequence for David. He chose to lie to his family and those he loved, secluded himself from his wife and deceived those around him and wasn't convicted in himself to tell the truth. Because of his actions he wasn't able to see his family all together and met his daughter. i think David deserved it, even if he created a hole for himself in the beginning of the book, there is always a consequence for thinking selfishly and David received that consequence.
Questions to Consider:
1.) What would you have done if you were in David's situation if you had a child with Down Syndrome?
2.) Do you think Caroline had a justified reason for not responding to David's request to let Phoebe meet Paul?
3.) Besides what other theme could be taken from the book? Maybe the fact that running away from your problems only makes the worse?
4.) How would Phoebe's life had been different if Caroline had dropped her off at the institution?
5.) What would have been different in Norah and David's family relationships if Lhoebe hadn't been taken away?
Caroline's character also confused me. I was surprised that she was willing to take on the responsibility of raising a child as a single mother, which was difficult for women at the time. Even though Caroline had no attachment to the baby, she still doesn't choose to leave it in the institution, even though she has no responsibility to take care of Phoebe. Again, it was very difficult for single women to raise children in this time period, so either Caroline has a very good and compassionate heart and a very strong conscious, or this is a plot hole.
What really stuck out to me, was that after their lives separated and Caroline ran away from the town to start her own life, Phoebe was still, in a way, connected to David. Caroline had met up with David before she left and he had asked her to keep in touch and let him know how Phoebe fairs every once in a while. In my opinion, this is what caused David and Norah to grow apart. Norah didn't know about Phoebe and Caroline's connection to David, but David knew about it all. He was aware that his daughter was still alive and he knew that when his wife grieved for her daughter she was grieving because of him. I think perhaps that David was grieving too, but in a different way. There really was no right action for him to do after he send Phoebe away. If he had told Norah "hey, I lied about our baby's death" then that would have caused an even bigger rift in their marriage, and Norah would have wanted to take Phoebe away from Caroline, which would've hurt Caroline emotionally. If David was still present in Phoebe's life, un-benowest to Norah, then that would have just been selfish and wrong. David basically had no good action to do. Six years after their twins were born David had picked up the hobby of photography but it wasn't because he actually enjoyed it. David used it as an excuse to have his own dark room and developing studio within his home to lock away the pictures of Phoebe and the letters from Caroline. This actually made me really mad because even though he couldn't do anything to make the situation better he still chose to keep Phoebe away from his wife. in my opinion, if Norah wasn't able to be with her daughter then David shouldn't have had any connection to her either. David had also requested to Caroline that he be able to meet Phoebe and introduce her to her brother Paul. I felt uneasy wen David made that request because he wouldn't let Norah know Phoebe was alive and yet he was willing to let his son. I believe its Norah's right to know her daughter is alive and David's continuous decision to ignore that right only made me more upset as the book continued on.
Towards the end of the book the Henrys' David and Norah, had grown further and further apart- Norah had taken a trip to Aruba and had an affair with someone while there. I don't believe in cheating on your partners, but i can understand why Norah felt the need and the freedom to do so. David had shut himself up more and more as time went on and barely spent any time with his family. Of the time that was spent with Paul and Norah he was disconnected. David ad his wife also had different opinions on what Paul should do with his life which led to even more friction between the couple. Norah had attached herself so deeply into Paul that she wanted him to have whatever he wanted in the world. David wanted a practical life for Paul and even though his son was a successful guitarist he opposed his wife many times about his son going to Julliard. Friction continues between the two and eventually David start to think about confessing to Norah. At this point i had regained some hope in David, thinking that he would go through with it. Unfortunately he died due to a heart attack and wasn't able to tell her. While sorting through David's belongings Norah discovered Phoebe whom was hidden from her all these years and was finally able to meet Phoebe. Caroline brought her down and allowed Norah to met her daughter and Paul to be reunited with his sister. When I read this i thought of it as a consequence for David. He chose to lie to his family and those he loved, secluded himself from his wife and deceived those around him and wasn't convicted in himself to tell the truth. Because of his actions he wasn't able to see his family all together and met his daughter. i think David deserved it, even if he created a hole for himself in the beginning of the book, there is always a consequence for thinking selfishly and David received that consequence.
Questions to Consider:
1.) What would you have done if you were in David's situation if you had a child with Down Syndrome?
2.) Do you think Caroline had a justified reason for not responding to David's request to let Phoebe meet Paul?
3.) Besides what other theme could be taken from the book? Maybe the fact that running away from your problems only makes the worse?
4.) How would Phoebe's life had been different if Caroline had dropped her off at the institution?
5.) What would have been different in Norah and David's family relationships if Lhoebe hadn't been taken away?
Analysis: Theme Section
One major theme that can be seen throughout the book would be the concept of telling the truth. Lies build upon each other and cause divisions in relationships which is a result from a corrupt character. This can be seen from David, the father figure in the novel. after looking at his daughter he thought o himself "Our world will never be the same" (Edwards 17). David chose to believe that Phoebe would bring less joy and more heart break into his life which is what led him to be selfish and send his daughter away as seen when he was speaking with Caroline the nurse. David asked her to take Phoebe away to a institution where she could get help but when Caroline had protested he replied, "Don't you see? This poor child will most likely have a serious heart defect. A fatal one. I'm trying to spare us all a terrible grief" (Edwards 19). He decided for himself what would happen to his daughter and chose to give her away to someone he didn't even know (someone at the institution) because he refused to live with raising a child who might have a disease. Down Syndrome. During this time, 1960s, there was little known about Down Syndrome itself and raising a child with the disease was difficult on parents. Knowing this from earlier experience David chose to send his daughter away out of selfishness for himself to save his own heartache. This point is huge because it was at the very beginning of the book and is the root of everything that follows. It can also be argued that David's death can be linked back the very day the twins were born. A major theme in this book is lying and how that effects those around you as well as yourself so David's death could be portrayed as his consequence for lying to everyone he loved. To list a few: his son had to grow up without his sister, Norah grieved for her daughter every day of her life, Caroline was now responsible for a life of whom was forced upon her by her boss, and David lived the rest of his life in the shadow of what he had done. It is evident that David's actions in the very beginning of the book led to the turmoil in his life afterwards. The book scenes switch back and forth between the life of Phoebe and Caroline to the life of Paul and Norah and David making the comparison to them easier for the reader. Even though Phoebe developed slower than the other kids, had medical complications and was a load on Caroline's shoulders, Phoebe was well loved and grew up in a good home with a loving and caring mother and father. On the other hand, Paul was raised by Norah and David who continued to have marriage issues with David hiding Phoebe from his wife and excluding himself from his family and Norah drinking and cheating on her husband.
Another theme that can be taken from this book can be understood from the old saying "one mans trash is another mans treasure." David didn't think that Phoebe was "trash" necessarily but he didn't want to raise his child if she had the possibility even of having Down Syndrome. When David gave his daughter to Caroline to bring to the institution he had "gave his trash" or ,for better words, given one of his gifts to someone else because he failed to see the beauty in it. Caroline on the other hand had turned what David had given her and had seen the beauty in it. Caroline treasured Phoebe and treated her like her own daughter-nursed her when she was sick (page 90), stayed up at night to make sure she was ok, and helped her through schooling and earlier on in life when she progresses behind the other kids. Caroline went out of her comfort zone to protect Phoebe as well- when a complete stranger Caroline's car broke down and Al (later to become her husband) offered her a ride in his truck to stay warm from the harsh winter cold. At first Caroline refused but after thinking of Phoebe she accepted even when she felt uncomfortable. Caroline thought of Phoebe as well when Al proposed to her twice and she decline- but it wasn't because Caroline thought Al didn't love her. Phoebe was uncertain if Al could love Phoebe as his own daughter and protect her as he should because of her down syndrome. However, Caroline's unease was put to rest when Al demonstrated great love for both Caroline and Phoebe when Phoebe had an allergic reaction to a bee sting and was rushed to the hospital. Al made sure she was alright and defended Phoebe and Caroline when her down syndrome was criticized. Caroline and her family was blessed with Phoebe and David had lost that blesssing when he had a heart attack and died without knowing his daughter.
Another theme that can be taken from this book can be understood from the old saying "one mans trash is another mans treasure." David didn't think that Phoebe was "trash" necessarily but he didn't want to raise his child if she had the possibility even of having Down Syndrome. When David gave his daughter to Caroline to bring to the institution he had "gave his trash" or ,for better words, given one of his gifts to someone else because he failed to see the beauty in it. Caroline on the other hand had turned what David had given her and had seen the beauty in it. Caroline treasured Phoebe and treated her like her own daughter-nursed her when she was sick (page 90), stayed up at night to make sure she was ok, and helped her through schooling and earlier on in life when she progresses behind the other kids. Caroline went out of her comfort zone to protect Phoebe as well- when a complete stranger Caroline's car broke down and Al (later to become her husband) offered her a ride in his truck to stay warm from the harsh winter cold. At first Caroline refused but after thinking of Phoebe she accepted even when she felt uncomfortable. Caroline thought of Phoebe as well when Al proposed to her twice and she decline- but it wasn't because Caroline thought Al didn't love her. Phoebe was uncertain if Al could love Phoebe as his own daughter and protect her as he should because of her down syndrome. However, Caroline's unease was put to rest when Al demonstrated great love for both Caroline and Phoebe when Phoebe had an allergic reaction to a bee sting and was rushed to the hospital. Al made sure she was alright and defended Phoebe and Caroline when her down syndrome was criticized. Caroline and her family was blessed with Phoebe and David had lost that blesssing when he had a heart attack and died without knowing his daughter.