Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Turning, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Trauma and Memory
Family, Violence, and Love
Addiction
Belonging and Escape
Regret and Forgiveness
Summary
Analysis
Vic Lang, his mother Carol, and his wife Gail (once again the first-person narrator) are celebrating a hot Christmas day together. After lunch, Carol surprises Vic and Gail with the news that Vic’s uncle and aunt, Ernie and Cleo, have invited them over; Vic’s grandmother will be there, too. Vic is shocked, but agrees to go, if only briefly. As the three of them drive through an upscale suburb to the address of Ernie and Cleo’s new house, Gail reflects on her relationship with Carol, which is marked by a sense of distance. Gail respects Carol but is unable to break through to her. Ernie and Cleo, on the other hand, she has never met, but she has heard plenty about them, little of it flattering.
This chapter is set much later in Vic’s adult life but before “Damaged Goods,” as Carol is still alive (and Bob’s whereabouts are therefore unknown to the rest of the Lang family). Everyone’s surprised reaction to Ernie and Cleo’s invitation suggests that Vic and Carol have seen little of Bob’s family since he disappeared; whether this is because the Langs have avoided them or the other way around—Vic and Carol never did care for Ernie and Cleo—is unclear. Gail in particular feels left out of these complex family dynamics.
Themes
Eventually they arrive at an enormous, tastelessly designed suburban house. Nothing is recognizable to Vic, but Carol points out that he has not seen Ernie and Cleo since he was in university. They knock on the door, but no one answers. As they can hear the faint sounds of people playing in the pool, they decide to check the backyard; a house this large must have a pool, Gail reasons. The enormous backyard, complete with a cabana, is empty, though it is clear that celebrations recently took place. As they look around, Carol trips on a ball and falls into the pool. All three of them are caught up in a fit of laughter, and Gail jumps in, too.
The unexpectedly fancy surroundings imply that Ernie’s fortunes have changed, a sharp contrast to Vic’s respectable middle-class lifestyle.
Themes
Vic is about to jump into the pool as well, when he looks concerned and asks if they are even at the right house. He looks inside while Gail and Carol swim and emerges in a panic. They run to the car, losing Carol’s shoe in the process, and speed out of the cul-de-sac. As they leave, they see Ernie, Cleo, and their family across the street, but speed away nevertheless, reasoning that they cannot stop now that they have trespassed in the neighbor’s home.
That Vic, Carol, and Gail choose to run after their indiscretion rather than admit their mistake to Ernie and Cleo suggests that not only are they embarrassed, but also that they were looking for any excuse not to attend. While Vic’s hesitance was explicit, Carol is also surprisingly happy to have a reason to skip the Christmas celebrations, however embarrassing it may be.
Themes
Back home, Vic opens a bottle of champagne. Carol, who admits she must have written down the address incorrectly, asks for a glass too, much to Vic’s surprise, as she does not drink. She insists, telling Vic she has a good excuse this time. Vic is still worried that the neighbors saw his car, but Carol and Gail insist on making merry. Gail tells them this is the most fun she has ever had at Christmas; growing up, her strict religious parents avoided any profane celebration of the holiday, including drinking. She then quickly apologizes to Carol, as she remembers that Carol does not drink because Bob was an alcoholic. Carol is not offended, and tells them her mother was an alcoholic, too.
Carol’s decision to drink suggests the buzz of excitement she feels after their accidental trespass, but it also suggests that she’s genuinely made peace with her missing husband, Bob. Gail’s own traumatic family history, while different from the Langs’, offers a way for her and Carol to connect with each other.
Themes
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Carol and Gail continue to talk about their childhoods as Vic does the dishes. Vic becomes increasingly angry at Gail’s parents as he hears of how they treated her. Carol tells them that she wanted to be a teacher, not a housewife her whole life. They then discuss Ernie’s family; the wobbegong cousins are all married with children now. Carol then tells Gail about Ernie’s depredations, and the way that her husband Bob always had to clean up after them, without any recognition from his mother, Nanna. As they talk and drink more champagne, Gail feels that she and Carol finally start to connect with each other.
The contrast between Carol and Gail’s free, open conversation and Vic’s anger at the stories they tell illustrates both their ability to make peace with the past and Vic’s inability to do so. Carol, in particular, has reconciled with the difficult, deeply unfair betrayals she has suffered at the hands of her mother, Bob, and society in general.
Themes
