Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in All the Bright Places, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Mental Health, Stigma, and Suicide
Community, Support, and Trust
Individuality and Identity
Language, Meaning, and Control
Grief, Trauma, Purpose, and Survivorship
Summary
Analysis
By this point, wandering is just an excuse to drive somewhere and kiss. Violet keeps telling herself she’s not ready for sex, but she also feels like she can’t get enough of Finch. She adds a “sex life” session to her board for Germ and writes in their wandering notebook. She writes about hearing Amanda’s older brothers talk about girls—they said that girls who have sex are “sluts,” but those that don’t are “teases.” Amanda insisted that the only way around that dichotomy was to stay with one guy forever.
Violet addition of a “sex life” section to her Germ board makes it clear that this is one area where Violet herself needs some guidance—and that once she gets more knowledge, she’d like to help others do the same. Her desire to figure out what it’ll mean to have sex with Finch also shows how close the two are getting to each other.
Themes
On Saturday morning, Finch picks Violet up and they go to the Arboretum. Violet asks about the fight with Roamer, but Finch says that Roamer was just being a jerk, and he pulls her into the backseat. They kiss for a long time, and it’s hard to stop. When Finch gets home after dropping Violet off, he messages her that he’s “thinking rather consistently of Someday.” Violet replies that someday will come soon.
If Finch doesn’t talk about the fight with Roamer in any detail, he doesn’t have to tell Violet about what he was thinking while Roamer beat him (that he’s afraid of himself and of not having enough time). Brushing her off is a way to avoid uncomfortable truths.
Themes
When Violet gets up on Sunday, Violet’s mom says someone left a package for her on the front porch. It says, “Ultraviolet.” Violet hopes it’s not embarrassing as she opens it, but it’s just a pair of goggles. She knows they’re from Finch, but she has no idea what they’re for. Noticing her mom’s hopeful look, Violet says that Finch is just a friend. A bit later, Violet messages Finch to ask what the goggles are for. He says that they’re waiting for the first warm day.
Finch clearly understands the power of having something to look forward to. The goggles and his cryptic note that they’re waiting for the first warm day of the year ensures that Violet is going to look forward to whatever’s coming. At the same time, this may be a way for Finch to give himself something to look forward to, something that might help him stay “awake” longer.
Themes
