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88. Madeline’s Mom
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Everything, Everything, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Coming of Age
Trust and Lies
Family, Abuse, and Bravery
The Value of Experience
Summary
Analysis
A week later, Maddy hugs Mr. Waterman as he leaves and then sits outside with Carla. Maddy knows what’s coming and asks Carla to not leave her. Carla says she’ll stay if Maddy needs her, but Maddy doesn’t need her—at least not like before. Maddy sobs for a while and then asks Carla what she’ll do. Carla says she might go back to work at a hospital and has already told Mom she’s leaving. Mom thanked her for caring for Maddy, which makes Maddy scowl. Carla encourages Maddy to forgive Mom, since she’s sick. Maddy insists that Mom took her whole life away, but Carla insists that Maddy has lots of life left. As Carla packs her things, Maddy asks if she read Flowers for Algernon. Carla says she didn’t like it, but confesses it made her cry.
When Carla says that Maddy doesn’t need her anymore, it effectively turns this moment into one in which Maddy is able to separate from a caregiver more on her terms. In important ways, Carla has been a more significant presence in Maddy’s life than Mom has been, given that Carla has been the one to encourage Maddy to develop her individuality and take risks. This suggests that even going forward, Maddy and Carla will be able to maintain a relationship—but again, as two equal adults.
Themes
