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
Finch calls Violet after third period, asking her to drive to Southern Indiana to see the Nest Houses (an art installation) and take pictures half in Indiana, half in Kentucky. He ignores Violet when she notes that the Ohio River runs the length of the Indiana-Kentucky border and asks why he's not in class. He says he got expelled and tells Violet to come outside, but she refuses. Finch seems to be talking too fast and refuses to explain anything more. Violet says they can go on Saturday, or they can go somewhere closer this afternoon. In a hollow voice, Finch says he’ll go alone and hangs up. Violet has no idea what just happened.
Wandering and spending time with Violet was Finch’s strategy for keeping himself “awake” and making sure he didn’t succumb to the “asleep” (a depressive episode) again. So, Violet refusing to go with him is a hard blow—it means that Finch is losing the one person who was able to support him and help him stay healthy and stable. Because Finch has kept everything hidden from Violet as much as possible, she also doesn’t realize exactly what’s going on her, so she can’t help Finch.
Themes
