Unwind

Unwind

by

Neal Shusterman

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Unwind: Chapter 36 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
Risa is the first to notice that there’s something wrong with both Connor and Lev. It annoys her, since she feels at home and even thinks she might join the Army as a medic when she turns 18. She heads for a study jet early one morning. Connor is already there and looks very tired. He’s reading Criminology for Morons, which Risa finds troubling. Connor looks around and says that the Admiral is looking for replacements for the Goldens. He asks Risa to promise that if the Admiral asks her, she’ll refuse, and says that the Admiral asked him and probably asked Emby. Risa asks if she can help, but Connor kisses her. Risa kisses him back.
Risa has shown herself to be the type who puts her head down in situations like these and goes with the flow, hence why Connor reading Criminology for Morons is disturbing for her—it suggests that Connor isn’t following her lead and sticking with what they know about how to survive. Asking Risa to refuse any offer to help the Admiral, meanwhile, shows that Connor now cares deeply for Risa, and he’s able to use what she taught him to try and protect her.
Themes
Anger, Violence, and Radicalization Theme Icon
Activism, Compassion, and Atonement Theme Icon
Risa realizes that Lev scares her. He comes to the infirmary one morning with a bad sunburn, which he got because he didn’t follow the rules and wear sunscreen. He reluctantly takes off his shirt so Risa can inspect his back. Risa sees the handprint and asks who hit him. Lev refuses to say and in a dead voice, tells Risa to give him cream for the burn. Risa says she misses the old Lev; this Lev is too creepy for her. Lev points out that he tricked Risa and turned her into the police and says that he has better things to do now.
It’s clear to Risa that Lev isn’t the kid he once was—if only because he refuses to follow simple rules like wearing sunscreen. Even if she’s unaware that he’s involved with the clappers, her suspicion that something is up shows that she’s skilled at stockpiling information and understanding when things are wrong with her friends.
Themes
Morality and Perspective Theme Icon
There’s a work call the next day, which Cleaver runs. There are only a few jobs, one of which is a brutal one on an oil pipeline in Alaska. Three kids raise their hands: a boy Risa doesn’t know, Mai, and Lev. Risa stares in disbelief and exchanges a glance with Connor. The minute she reaches the infirmary, she calls for messengers until Lev arrives. She orders him into the back room and asks what he’s thinking taking the job. He insists he just wants to see Alaska and when Risa threatens to tell the Admiral he’s seriously ill, Lev says he’s not naïve anymore—there are things he has to do. Risa lets him go but tells him he’s naïve and stupid. She believes she won’t see him again.
Notice how Lev frames what he has to do—it closely mirrors the way he talked about his tithing months before. This suggests that the clappers are fulfilling some of the same needs that Lev was getting filled by inclusion in his church and through his impending tithing. With this, it explains some of why Lev falls in with the clappers in the first place: they make him feel just as at home as his church did but give him a purpose that feels even more meaningful.
Themes
Anger, Violence, and Radicalization Theme Icon
Morality and Perspective Theme Icon