Previous
22. Diagnosis
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
Maddy firmly believes that she’s sick the next morning, but Carla checks her vital signs and insists that Maddy is just lovesick. Maddy insists she can’t be in love, since there’s no point. Carla says in a serious tone that love isn’t pointless: just because Maddy can’t experience everything doesn’t mean that she shouldn’t experience anything, and doomed love is a normal part of being alive. For most of the morning, Maddy is too distracted to do anything. By afternoon, Maddy decides that Carla is right, but she’s just “in like,” not “in love.” She sees Olly everywhere and also pictures herself floating above the earth, where walls don’t obscure her view. For the first time in a long time, Maddy wants more.
Carla’s insistence that love and loss are a part of life go against everything Maddy has grown up knowing. Growing up so sheltered means that she’s never had to reckon with crushes that didn’t pan out, as many teens do before they’re her age. Further, in terms of Maddy’s health, Carla also has a point—being in love or experiencing heartache aren’t going to kill Maddy, like going into the outside world might.
Themes
