The theme is...

I see a theme connection within the last three stories, but I am not sure if it fits with the first. In these stories, it tells of the relationship between parents and children. Within everyone of these relationships, it seems that the parents are trying to do what they think is best for their children, but in the children's eyes, it is not right. It just goes to show that it doesn't matter if you have regular American middle-class parents or parents who have immigrated here, everyone one of these relationships can be strained. Everyone has the same problems, parents too controlling or children being disrespectful. These are worldly problems that probably everyone will have to face at one point or another in his or her life. I guess this can be related to the first story as well. I think it relates because the mother was doing what she thought was best for her daughter, but it turned out to be for the worst.

Also, in three of the stories, there was a disappearance of some kind. I don't think that this is a theme. I think that this just depends on the situation. Each person went away for a specific reason. Sometimes it is just easier than dealing with whatever is actually going on, but it will leave the loved ones left behind missing you dearly. In "The Book of the Dead" and "Teenage Wasteland," the reader can see what an effect the disappearance has had on the loved ones. In "The Life You Save May Be Your Own," the reader has no idea what the mother feels. They let the reader decide. So I guess another theme could be that actions taken by one person effect those around that person.

Something else that has happened in each of the stories is that the main character had to do what he thought was best. In the first story, Mr. Shiftlet did just that. He conned the family out of almost everything, but that is what he had to do. In the second story, Waverly had to stand up to her mother. She needed her to know how she felt. In the third, the father kept his past a secret, which is what he thought was best. It turned out to be otherwise, but still that is what he did. In the last story, the son left. He felt that his life would be better without his parents, and he decided to live on his own. In each of these situations, the outcome was different, but these characters consistently did what they thought needed to be done. In most cases, it was selfish, but that is what they did. So I think that another theme could be the characters taking care of themselves first.