Lydia Howland Character Analysis

Alice and John’s youngest child. Unlike her siblings Anna and Tom, Lydia does not immediately go to college after high school, instead opting for a gap year in Europe before moving to LA to pursue acting. Because of this, Alice and Lydia struggle to get along and frequently argue over Lydia’s future. After Alice is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, it is revealed that Lydia was the only one who had noticed the changes in Alice’s behavior over the past year, including forgetting words and repeating herself frequently, which highlights how insightful and observant Lydia is. Although Alice and Lydia frequently butt heads, they do start getting closer as Alice begins struggling more with her memory. Lydia is frequently the only one who really understands Alice, pointing it out to others when Alice is struggling to keep up with conversations and reminding her what things are when she can see that Alice is confused about an object. Although she knows she may have inherited a mutated gene that causes Alzheimer’s from Alice, Lydia chooses not to get tested. Eventually, Lydia chooses to study acting at a university, which makes Alice very proud. Lydia chooses a school close to Cambridge that will allow her to be closer to the whole family and help care for Alice as her symptoms get worse.