Previous
Chapter 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in These Violent Delights, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Factions, Feuds, and Forbidden Love
Retaliation and Justice
Imperialism and Greed
Moral Complexity, Betrayal, and Forgiveness
Power, Responsibility, and Monstrosity
Summary
Analysis
The next morning, Juliette eats dinner with her father, Lord Cai. She discusses with him the wave of madness spreading through the city that seems to be causing people to tear out their own throats. But Lord Cai’s mind is elsewhere. He’s trying to navigate the politics of the city as the burgeoning Communist Party seems to be overtaking the Nationalist party from within. He doesn’t have time to worry about rumors of a monster.
This passage references the real-life political tensions that existed in China during the time the novel takes place (1926). In real life, the Kuomintang Party (the Nationalist Party in the book) began to have conflicts with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Those conflicts ultimately led to the Chinese Civil War, which lasted from 1927 to 1949, at which point the CCP took control of the country.
Themes
Juliette’s cousin, Tyler, enters the room. He sits at the table with Juliette and Lord Cai. Tyler says that it’s time they wage a war with the White Flower Gang to assert their control over the city. To Juliette’s surprise, Lord Cai seems to take what Tyler says seriously. When Tyler has finished, Juliette says that now is no time for a turf war and storms out of the room. Tyler follows her and tells Juliette that she’s not acting like the heir to the Scarlet Gang. He then accuses Juliette of trying to protect Roma. Juliette can’t believe what Tyler is saying. She would rather kill Roma than protect him. She then tells Tyler that he’s making serious accusations against her, and if he does it again, she’ll kill him.
This passage portrays Tyler as aggressive and eager for battle with the White Flower Gang. Juliette’s surprise that her father, Lord Cai, seems to be taking Tyler seriously shows that, from her point of view, he is reckless and rash, and his ideas should be dismissed out of hand. Tyler then confronts Juliette and questions her suitability as heir to the Scarlet Gang, suggesting that perhaps Tyler has ambitions to take over the gang himself. Juliette’s response, though, shows that she is also prepared to engage in violence in order to achieve her aims.
Themes
