Family

Family

By: Nate Reichter

In Neal Shusterman’s novel Unwind there are many topics that could be addressed, such as storking, abortion, unwinding as well as the role of family.  I would like to dive more into the theme of family and how family affects each individual character throughout the book.

When I think of family I think of unconditional love.  I think of family always being there to pick a person up when they fall.  I think of family being there to protect and support a person in times of hardship.  I think of family as always being there through thick and thin, with unending forgiveness.  In the novel Unwind this is not the case, the role of the family is unconventional and immoral.  This is shown by mothers storking unwanted babies and leaving them on complete stranger’s doorsteps, from parents choosing to no longer care for their teenage son’s or daughter’s and having them unwound, as well as having an absence of family.  Through these unconventional and immoral acts the main characters in the book form their own unique bond with one another.  The absence of a true family sentiment bolsters Conner, Risa, and Lev’s own unique bond with one another. 

In life we know that not one child is ever perfect, they all make mistakes.  This is the same case with Conner. Conner is the typical teenage boy who cannot control his temper and gets into many fights.  Conner has very little mind control; he acts purely on impulse without thinking about the consequence.  These actions end up getting Conner into big trouble, pulling his parents final straw.  Conner’s family decides they no longer want to take responsibility in raising him, because of his reoccurring behavior problems. By no longer wanting the responsibility of Conner his parents sign the unwinding document, getting him out of their hair.  This goes against all of our society’s belief on family.  This boy is a typical teenage boy acting out because the lack of attention at home.  Just because this boy is getting into trouble does not mean that his parents should send him away to be unwound.  This is just one phase of his life, that will be tough but eventually he will work through his problems.  This is the time where parents step into to guide their child along the right track, to love them through thick and thin.  For Conner’s parents it was all about having a trouble free future.  For Conner’s parents “tough decision” they were so upset they thought they needed to take a cruise to ease their minds.  These trains of thoughts do not resemble one ounce of the traditional family beliefs.

As for Lev his story is a little different.  Lev was the last of ten children in his family, being the tenth child his fate had already been determined.  Even before Lev was born his parents had decided he would be sacrificed in the name of the lord, they call these sacrifices tithes.  From the minute Lev was born his parents began to brain wash him ensuring that his path was a chosen one.  Lev never swayed from his parents rules and never questioned his parent’s authority.  That was until the day he met Conner and Risa.  Throughout Lev’s journey with Conner and Risa, Lev gradually begins to realize that his parents have misled him, causing Lev to question his path in life.  In the beginning of the novel Lev believes that his unwinding will be admired and respected, also brining him faithfully closer to the Lord.  By the end of the novel Lev’s beliefs of his unwinding have completely changed.  Lev’s journey with Conner and Risa completely transformed the way Lev thought about anyone or anything. At the end of the book Lev finds out there is only one family member who truly cared about his wellbeing, his older brother. Through Lev’s journey he also realizes that his true family members are his friends Conner and Risa. 

Risa’s journey is very different from both Conner and Lev.  Risa is an orphan who was brought up in a state home, never really knowing what a family has ever felt like.  Risa has been brought up in the state home for quiet sometime seeing many children coming and going.  What keeps Risa from leaving is her gift to play the piano or so she thought.  Risa with so much potential to be a great piano player never fully reaches her potential she is capable of making her expendable.  With Risa unable to reach her fullest potential and the expensive cost of living the state home has made the decision to have Risa unwound.  Instead of helping and caring for Risa the state home found it more accessible to have Risa unwound, hopefully giving her gifts to another child who could reach their fullest potential.  Risa’s lack of family has enabled her to reach her fullest potential, which is why when she meets Conner she feels inspired.  She feels she has something to work for and to be able to reach her potential.  Conner fills the void of family and helps Risa through her tough times.  In society today the normal family member would take the place of Conner and help Risa through her tough times.

Through all the main characters tough times Conner, Risa and Lev created a bond that no one will ever break.  The bond that Conner, Risa and Lev created fulfills each characters lack of family needs. Through all the breakdowns and tough times each character finds something in one another to call family.  Conner, Risa and Lev would do anything for one another, for example when Lev thought about taking his own life to save Conner’s. “He peels the backs, revealing the adhesive, and sticks them to his palms.” “Still wailing for his agony, he holds his hands up before him, preparing to make the pain go away.” (p.310)   Lev is wailing because he had lost a brother, and he could have done something about it.  He is so hurt he would take his own life to not feel the pain.  We see that Conner, Risa and Lev all care very much for one another; they are willing to go the extra distance for one another like the typical family of today.