Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Wave, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Groupthink and Coercion
History and the Past
Equality vs. Independence
Education
Summary
Analysis
As The Wave begins to spread beyond the walls of his history classroom, Ben Ross is unsure of what to make of his little experiment. Students from other classes are now joining The Wave and even sitting in on Ross’s history class—but despite the larger class size, the students are actually covering material quickly and efficiently. Everyone is well-prepared for class each day—but Ross is slightly perturbed by the automatic, unthinking answers his students spit back without any questioning or analysis. Even though the students are doing their homework more often, their answers are short and rote, devoid of thoughtfulness or personality.
Ben Ross’s great mission as a teacher is to get his students to think critically about what they’re learning, and examine the place the lessons of history have in their present day-lives. The Wave has organized and galvanized his students—but it’s also made them into automatons who value unthinking uniformity over critical, individualized thought.
Themes
As Ross asks some of his students what they like most about The Wave, he is pleased to hear that the experiment has essentially erased social cliques and helped the students feel like they are “all equal.” He dreams of the possibilities The Wave could create, and envisions an article about himself in Time magazine lauding him for his advancements in education and discipline.
Ben Ross, time and time again, nudges aside his personal fears and misgivings about his own experiment by imagining the individual glory and success he stands to achieve if The Wave works out the way he wants it to. Ross prioritizes himself over his students’ well-being in these moments.
Themes
During a staff meeting of the Grapevine, Laurie tells her writers that there are not enough stories for the upcoming issue, which is due out this week. Laurie urges her staff to come up with some more ideas for stories, and Carl suggests writing about The Wave—the “biggest story” in school lately. Laurie is nervous about writing about The Wave, as the thought of doing so gives her a “creepy” feeling. Nevertheless, she urges her student reporters to gather as much information as they can about The Wave—and find out what Gordon students are really saying about the experiment.
Laurie is testing the waters with regard to speaking out publicly against The Wave. She doesn’t yet know what the movement really is—only that it rubs her the wrong way, and seems too powerful for its own good. Laurie isn’t ready to take a stand yet—but this passage shows that she and several other Gordon High students haven’t renounced their capacity for individual, critical thought.
Themes
That night, Laurie is doing homework in her room when her mother comes in to talk to her. Mrs. Saunders sits on Laurie’s bed and tells her that she ran into Robert Billings’s mother at the supermarket earlier—and was surprised to hear that Robert has been transformed by The Wave. Mrs. Saunders says she doesn’t trust something that could create such a drastic change, and admits she’s worried that The Wave sounds a little bit like a cult. Laurie says she’s feeling more and more skeptical of The Wave, but believes it is just a “fad” that will pass.
This passage again deals with how susceptible outsiders like Robert are to movements that flatten individuality and focus on the group. Robert feels accepted for the first time—but the sense of happiness he feels is an illusion, and the circumstances that have allowed him to be included are false and even dangerous.
Themes
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Mrs. Saunders points out that she’s heard there is a Wave rally before the upcoming football game at which two hundred new Wave members will be “formally indoctrinate[d].” Laurie urges her mother not to be too “paranoid”—The Wave is just a game, and Mr. Ross is a good teacher who would never let his students get out of hand. Laurie admits that she doesn’t know why her closest friends like David and Amy would get swept up in something so immature—but begs her mother not to blow things out of proportion. As Mrs. Saunders leaves her room, however, Laurie wonders if The Wave really is “just a fad.”
Laurie’s misgivings about The Wave increase seemingly by the hour. Her “worrywart” mother’s opinions meant less to her just a couple of days ago—but now, as she sees the effect The Wave is having, she realizes that her mother’s fears about the Gordon High students’ loss of individuality might be more valid than she thought.
Themes
