Summary
Chapter 9
Peter recalls texting Sylvia about Naomi's eviction and arrest. She responded positively when he told her that Naomi is staying with him. Later, as he researches online in preparation for an upcoming case, he feels disillusioned at the thought that his hard work will amount to nothing. Ultimately, he feels resentful that he has to make such a strenuous effort to climb the social ladder. He has to work hard for what others simply inherit. At the same time, he believes that beauty and culture cannot be bought. He does not quite fit in with the upper echelon of society, nor does it seem that he really wants to. At the heart of his desires is the need to be proven right.
Naomi shares her suspicion that her friend Janine resents Naomi for living with Peter. He, in turn, tells her about Ivan's outburst at the dinner. Peter later untangles his own reaction, feeling a mixture of pity and disgust. At lunch with Sylvia on a different day, she encourages Peter to text Ivan. He sends a message only to see that Ivan blocked his number. Three weeks pass. Peter tries to find work, has lunch and coffee dates with Sylvia, and enjoys domestically taking care of Naomi. Both women are aware of each other and even ask after the other's well-being. The days pass in a blur. At Peter's friend's thirty-third birthday party, Peter becomes preoccupied with how old Jesus was at the time of his death. Back at his home, he and Naomi take a bath together. Naomi asks whether he is emotionally involved with another woman, but Peter refuses to answer. They go to bed together.
Christine calls and inquires as to whether Peter has a new girlfriend. They have a tense exchange that leaves Peter realizing that, in spirit, he has always been Ivan's ally in their family dynamic.
Chapter 10
Margaret and Ivan continue spending quality time together, enjoying the little things. However, the ethics of their relationship (given their different ages) keeps bothering Margaret. They continue exchanging stories and anecdotes as they get to know each other. Ivan disapproves of the way Margaret's family treats her, though she insists they are not that bad. Though Margaret's mother seems to express disapproval at her daughter's life choices, Margaret in fact feels satisfied with her job, friends, and romantic partner. Ivan tells her he loves her, and she reflects the sentiment despite believing that he will soon leave her for a girl closer to his own age.
Margaret reads a news article about Peter's recent legal victory in a case involving sexist discrimination in the workplace. She mentions it to Ivan. This brings up the fact of the brothers' strained relationship. Margaret privately pities Peter, asking questions that prompt understanding on both sides. Ivan's resentments are too ingrained to be swayed by Margaret's more neutral tone. Ivan regrets the way that his dynamic with Peter upset their father in his final months of life. Margaret secretly relates to Peter, "the older, disappointed, compromised person, who has made a mess of everything, who does not deserve Ivan's love." Ivan, on the other hand, wants to protect himself and Margaret from his older brother's contempt.
As the weeks pass, Ivan's spirits lift. His chess performance improves, he works the fewest amount of hours necessary to provide for his basic needs, and he spends his weekends with Margaret. Ideally, Ivan would qualify for his second IM norm, moving him a step closer to the three norms he needs to secure the title of International Master. One afternoon, he goes to Christine's house to collect Alexei. His encounter with his stepbrother Darren is awkward and strained. Alexei is in the utility room with empty food and water bowls, which upsets Ivan. He refuses Christine's dinner invitation and leaves with Alexei. Christine and Darren look at him as though he were crazy, but he feels like the normal one. He wishes them inner peace and happiness so as not to nurse any bitterness.
Chapter 11
Peter goes to Sylvia's office only to find that she is not there. A colleague of hers informs Peter that she called in sick. Peter feels ill at the notion of Sylvia's pain. He picks up her prescriptions and insists on coming inside her apartment, where she has been wracked with pain. He helps her take her medication and get into bed. She starts to feel better. They discuss their true feelings about Sylvia's decision to end their partnership. Peter feels hurt and angry that Sylvia ended things, and pleads with her to get back together. She does not directly answer the plea, but they have a sexual encounter. After, Peter asks her to marry him. They profess their love for each other. Peter basks in happiness until he later receives a text from Naomi asking when he will be home.
Analysis
The question of what constitutes "normal" recurs in Peter's conversations with other characters. In particular, it impedes his relationship with Ivan. It is this word that gets under Ivan's skin when Peter accuses Margaret of not being "normal" in her intimate preferences. According to Ivan, Peter assigns a "high, practically moral degree of value to the concept of normality, which phrased in another way means conformity with the dominant culture" (Chapter 7). Sylvia also questions Peter's meaning when he uses the word. She rhetorically asks who, in fact, is normal, implying that no one is. This demonstrates the weight that the word carries. It is a social construct that depends on culture, time, and power dynamics.
Though Peter confided in both Sylvia and Naomi about his disastrous dinner with Ivan, it is Sylvia who directly challenges him, gives advice, and asks him to confront his own hypocrisy. This shows the degree of trust between Sylvia and Peter. Peter has voiced his need "to be right," yet he allows Sylvia to challenge his assertions (Chapter 9). Sylvia acts as a catalyst prompting Peter's growth. She provides a valuable perspective as someone outside the siblings' dynamic but still very close to Peter. Despite turning to Naomi to fulfill his sexual needs, Peter still meets his match intellectually and emotionally with Sylvia. This psychological split between intellect and physicality reflects Peter's alienation from his own feelings. However, Rooney does not reduce the situation to a simple Madonna-Whore complex. Instead, she explores how Peter's emotional fragmentation traps him between conflicting values.
When confronted with the reality of his and Margaret's 14-year age gap, Ivan perceives the situation based on his own moral autonomy, while Margaret fears the costs of community judgment. Her fears are not unfounded. Research has shown that people involved in marginalized relationships are "likely to experience less approval, acceptance, and support from social network members and society in general" than those in similar-age relationships (Lehmiller and Agnew). Perhaps Margaret feels sobered by her mother's reaction following her divorce. Though Margaret did not face extreme prejudice or discrimination following her divorce, she still may have internalized societal expectations concerning relationships in general.
Peter recognizes the facade of his own competency when faced with Sylvia's suffering. Reflecting on the times when he accompanied his father to oncology appointments, he understands that his "show of erudition" and "command of detail" did nothing in the end to alleviate his father's illness (Chapter 11). In an earlier chapter, Peter himself admits his innermost need "to be right," which in fact is a coping mechanism to create an illusion of control (Chapter 9). However, his righteousness alienates him emotionally. Being "right" substitutes being at peace, and is symptomatic of a culture that values intellect over emotional intelligence.
Sylvia's refusal to call Peter for help while experiencing debilitating pain is also a form of emotional avoidance because she cannot tolerate the asymmetry of care. Since a car accident years before rendered her unable to have penetrative sex, Sylvia is convinced that a fully realized union with Peter is impossible, and that he would come to hate her if they stayed together. Her decision to end the relationship stemmed from a protective need to preserve her dignity, but it also displays an internalized cultural norm around intimacy and worthiness. This ties in to Peter's fixation on normalcy. Sylvia feels that she cannot perform the duty of a "normal" woman, so rather than risk rejection, she preemptively ended the relationship. Her self-sufficiency functions as both armor and a form of isolation.
