50 pages • 1 hour read
Carla TrujilloWhat Night Brings
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2003A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Faith Versus Knowledge
Religion plays an integral role in Marci’s story. Her primary goals are both expressed as prayers to Catholic figures: Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and God. From the beginning, however, Marci finds it difficult to navigate the relationship between religion and science. The questions she asks Sister ‘Lizabeth are rooted in that conflict. She is bothered by the fact that the Bible does not give any information about dinosaurs, for example, and she is often told that having faith in God is more important than her curiosity.
The theme does not strictly appear in terms of religion, however. Delia has complete faith in Eddie; she allows him to dictate her actions, and Marci repeatedly mentions that Delia does not have any thoughts of her own. Eddie is in complete control. Marci prays to the Virgin Mary to put knowledge in Delia’s head so that she will leave Eddie. Delia’s inability to question her faith results in inaction, which hurts her and her daughters.
In addition, Leti puts faith in her folk remedies. Her belief in their power is so strong that she gives the girls powder that is meant to change Eddie’s behaviors, but she does not help them leave their dangerous situation. This faith without action leads to the violent climax of the story, in which Marci and Corin decide to act outside of faith.
Masculinity as Power
Marci perceives masculinity as strength. Eddie’s violence keeps him, the lone male in the family, in control; Tommy’s muscles and his constant weightlifting define his masculinity, as well. Throughout her journey, Marci seeks an answer to her problems through masculinity. She lifts Tommy’s weights, learns karate, and plays sports as an excuse to run into Raquel.
Marci hopes to literally fulfill a role of masculinity by becoming a boy, as she sees no other way to help herself or other girls in her situation. Even male genitals are a commodity of strength. The girls escape an attack by kicking Eddie in his testicles, hurting what makes him male. When Marci fantasizes about tying Eddie up, the final image Marci has is of preparing to cut off his testicles, rendering him forever weak in her view.
Through Delia and Randy, Marci portrays femininity as a weakness. Randy is emotional and easily hurt, while Delia is manipulated by Eddie and unable to eject him from her life. The shortcomings of these characters are in direct opposition to Marci’s understanding of masculinity. Notice that she does not pray to have a penis specifically for sexual purposes, but because she believes it is key in her rescue fantasies.
Humor in Response to Violence
Despite the violence they endure, Marci and Corin both display resilient senses of humor. From time to time, each tells childish jokes, such as calling their mother names with Randy, but their distinct flavors give a sense of the girls’ coping mechanisms.
Much of Marci’s humor comes through in her observations. She notes the absurdity of religious traditions such as communion and fixates on the quirks of the adults around her. This ties directly in with the way she reacts to Eddie’s abuse. Marci has a calculating thought process, in which she observes information and synthesizes it into action. The reader can infer that this ability to see the world from outside herself keeps Marci resilient, as shown in her objective reaction to the fading bruises on her arms and legs during Eddie’s absence.
Corin’s humor is much darker than Marci’s. She first jokes during Eddie’s suicide attempt and quips throughout the novel’s tensest scenes. She teases Delia about Wanda’s arrival to the apartment and provides accidental comic relief when Marci talks to Tommy about his sexuality. Her humor allows her to engage more actively, and it shows her ability to react in the moment. Her thoughts turn into actions much quicker than Marci’s.
Violence on Large and Small Scales
The Vietnam War looms over the violence of the novel. This is personified mostly through Danny. The effects of the war on Danny are both physical and emotional. The violence takes one of his eyes and leaves him with trauma that leads to addiction. The way his remaining eye “didn’t want to see nothing no matter what was in front of it” after the war is compared with Delia and Corin’s distant gazes, directly comparing the violence of war to their domestic violence (50).
The prevalence of violence is especially significant to Marci because of a prayer she made for Danny. She prayed that Danny would return from the war safely, which didn’t happen. This is further proof that faith without action cannot stop violence. Just as Danny was dragged into the war, so was Marci born a victim, and his wish—to be buried overlooking the bay—could not be fulfilled until after his death.
