Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Identity, Ethnicity, and Masculinity
Silence and Trauma vs. Communication
Family and Coming of Age
Intellectualism and Emotion vs. Physical Strength
Summary
Analysis
Aunt Ophelia dies before Ari and Dad get to Tucson. Her funeral mass is standing room only, but Ari’s immediate family is the only family there. People approach Ari and tell him that Ophelia adored him, which makes Ari ashamed that he didn’t talk to her more. After the funeral, Mom, Dad, and Ari stay at Ophelia’s house to take care of things. Ari can barely imagine Mom having a mental breakdown and asks one evening why nobody else came to Ophelia’s funeral. Mom says that Ophelia lived with another woman, Franny, and that the rest of the family doesn’t approve. Ari remembers Franny fondly. Mom makes it clear that Ophelia and Franny were lovers, but Ari says it doesn’t bother him.
The revelation that Aunt Ophelia was a lesbian and that Mom and Dad clearly didn’t care much, if at all, is important information for Ari. His insistence that it doesn’t bother him and that he still remembers Ophelia and Franny fondly shows that Ari himself is more than willing to see all people as people, regardless of who they might love. This implies that he may be ready to come to a realization about his own sexuality, and that his parents’ acceptance of Ophelia will serve as a model for his own self-acceptance.
Themes
