Previous
Summary
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in One Day, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Relationships and Time
Social Class
Coming of Age and the Search for Meaning
Addiction and Recovery
Summary
Analysis
Friday 15 July 1988. In Edinburgh, Scotland, college students Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley are in bed together. Dexter is from a rich family, while Emma’s background is more working class, and she comes from Yorkshire. They talk about what they want to do after graduation. Dexter wants to see the world. Emma asks Dexter what he wants to be when he’s 40, and Dexter has a hard time even imagining it. He eventually decides that he wants to stay exactly the same.
The novel begins in the late 1980s, setting up how it will explore both the changes in main characters Dexter and Emma’s lives over the next 20 years as well as changes in the world in general. At this point in the story, age 40 is almost unimaginable for the characters, particularly Dexter. His desire to stay the same over the years is impossible and foreshadows how in his early years after university, he will struggle to grow up and adapt to the responsibilities of adult life.
Themes
Emma tells Dexter she can see him at 40. He’ll have thinning hair and be much heavier, driving a hover-sportscar next to his 23-year-old fourth wife on the way to the country club. Dexter suggests that Emma barely knows him. He asks if he’s so awful, then why is she having sex with him. She reminds him that they haven’t actually had sex yet and tells him he needs to brush his teeth. He says the same to her, so she leaves for the bathroom.
Emma’s fantasy of Dexter’s future suggests someone who appears successful on the surface but is shallow. In some ways, her prediction reflects her own insecurity and her feeling that she might not be the right kind of person for Dexter. This is because while he comes from a relatively wealthy background, she does not, and this difference affects their relationship not just at university but in the years that follow, as well.
Themes
Dexter looks around Emma’s room. He’s been in many similar rooms and expects to find things like Nina Simone albums and photos of Nelson Mandela. He supposes she dislikes anything bourgeois but has never seen anything wrong with the concept himself. Dexter is 23 and has little vision for the future other than to have sex with women and make his parents happy. Though he’d like to be famous for his work, he isn't sure what his work would be. He doesn’t want to get too involved with Emma and briefly considers leaving, but he decides to stay.
One of the other main differences between Dexter and Emma are their political views. Emma shows an interest in politics, particularly left-wing causes like civil rights (as represented by the Nina Simone album and Nelson Mandela photos that Dexter expects to find among her possessions). Meanwhile, Dexter seems to be more apathetic on social issues. His desire not to get too involved with Emma also reflects his indifference in general toward things going on in the world around him, a privilege he has due to his family’s wealth, which insulates him against some hardships and has thus far provided him a life of ease.
Themes
Meanwhile, Emma is brushing her teeth. She has like Dexter since she first saw him at a party in 1984, and she wonders why she feels she has to be so sarcastic with him, given that they don’t have much time and might never see each other again after graduation.
The novel has an omniscient perspective and jumps among the thoughts of Dexter, Emma, and even minor characters. This passage reveals that even though Emma is sarcastic with Dexter and seems to scold him for his lack of direction in life, she has her own self-doubts when she’s alone.
Themes
Get the entire One Day LitChart as a printable PDF.
Emma gets back into bed with Dexter. He starts to kiss her on the neck, but she says she only wants to cuddle, even though she hates the word “cuddle.” They hear birds chirping outside. Emma lies awake and anxiously thinks about her future. She wants to make a difference in the world and experience new things. Meanwhile, as it gets lighter, Dexter wonders again if he should try to slip out. He knows this would mean never seeing Emma again. He finds her attractive, even if things about her like her glasses and the way she cuts her hair bother him.
The dawning of the morning reflects how Emma and Dexter are each about to start a new phase of their lives once they leave university. It also reflects how this night marks the start of a new relationship that will play an important part in each of their futures. Dexter’s desire to slip out, in spite of the fact that he likes Emma, shows how he is afraid of getting close to people, instead preferring more superficial relationships that come with fewer responsibilities.
Themes
Just as Dexter decides it would probably be best to leave after all, Emma opens her eyes. She asks him what he’s doing later. It’s St. Swithin’s Day, and if it rains on St. Swithin’s grave, that means more rain for the rest of the summer. She says they should do something if it doesn’t rain. Part of Dexter wants to lie and say he’s busy, but he admits that he has nothing planned and agrees to do something with Emma.
St. Swithin’s Day is the one day that continues to be important to Dexter and Emma throughout the rest of their lives. As Emma explains, per tradition, whether it rains on St. Swithin’s Day is an omen for rain in the coming weeks. This reflects how the events on each St. Swithin’s Day for Dexter and Emma determine (at least symbolically) the course of the year that follows.
Themes
