Summary
During her senior year, Tara hears news that her father has suffered a terrible accident and may not survive. Tara rushes home to find that Gene has been severely burned during an explosion at the junkyard. Despite the damage to his internal organs, Gene explains that he would rather die at home than be treated in a hospital. Tara waits by her father’s bedside, listening to his labored breathing and expecting the worst. Gene responds well to the tinctures that Tara’s mother prepares, and his condition appears to improve slowly.
While recovering, Gene undergoes a personality shift. Because he is unable to speak, Tara notices that her father transforms from a “lecturer to an observer.” Tara welcomes this change, and she hopes that their family can build a brighter future for themselves. Meanwhile, Tara learns that Shawn plans to marry his girlfriend, Emily. Tara worries about their relationship, as Emily has previously expressed her anxiety surrounding Shawn’s violent outbursts.
When Gene’s condition stabilizes, Tara returns to BYU. She continues to perform well in her classes, and one of her professors encourages her to apply for an exchange program at Cambridge University. Tara doubts that she will be accepted, but she applies nonetheless. At home, Tara learns that Emily has given birth to a premature baby. Gene’s miraculous recovery draws acclaimed attention to Faye’s herbal business, and the family enjoys a new period of economic prosperity.
Tara is accepted to Cambridge for a semester abroad program. While enrolled at King's College, Tara studies history under Professor Jonathan Steinberg. After hearing about Tara’s background, Professor Steinberg compares Tara to Eliza Doolittle. Dr. Steinberg is very impressed by Tara’s writing, and he insists that she apply to Cambridge for graduate school. Tara is, once again, doubtful. However, both Dr. Steinberg and Dr. Kerry encourage her to be more confident in herself and feel a sense of belonging within the Cambridge community.
Back at BYU, Tara learns that she has received a prestigious Gates scholarship. In lieu of graduating, Tara receives press coverage and accolades for this achievement. However, she chooses not to disclose any information about her upbringing. While the graduation ceremony is full of pomp and circumstance, Tara has difficulty reconciling her dysfunctional family life with her academic achievements. She is embarrassed by her dad’s maimed appearance, and her parents fail to attend many of the ceremonies in which Tara is the principal honoree.
Tara begins her post-graduate studies at Trinity College, Cambridge. At the beginning, she is once again overwhelmed by her feelings of imposter syndrome. She has difficulty acclimating to social life, and she feels separated by her majority upper-class colleagues. After befriending two female classmates, Tara undergoes a feminist awakening and realizes how her gender greatly impacted her upbringing. Tara returns home for the holidays, where she helps her mother with her booming oils business.
While at home, Tara observes when Emily, Shawn’s wife, exasperatingly shows up to their house with their disabled son. Shawn went on one of his emotional tirades and kicked Emily out of the house during the coldest night of the year. In light of her newfound feminist consciousness, Tara begins to ask herself how she should react to her brother’s misogynistic and abusive behavior. Audrey, Tara’s older sister, confides that she, too, was victim to Shawn’s physical and emotional abuse before leaving home. Tara confronts her mother to tell her about Shawn’s behavior, and Tara soon discovers how her mother has long suffered her own abuse due to Gene’s paranoia.
Analysis
Gene’s dangerous and extremist lifestyle profoundly affects the lives of each member of the Westover family. However, Gene’s own injury exemplifies how he has literally become “mangled” by his beliefs. Because he refuses to seek proper medical care, Gene forces the entire family to become his nurses and caretakers. Although he survives, he is severely deformed and disabled. During his recovery process, Tara refers to Gene’s accident as a “blessing in disguise.” For the first time in his life, Gene is forced to listen and accept being in a non-authoritative position.
Tara is hopeful that her father’s accident will repair the family’s fraught dynamic. However, things do not quite turn out this way. When Shawn marries his girlfriend, Emily, Tara worries for the wellbeing of his new family. This dynamic causes Tara to feel anxious and powerless—Tara doesn’t want to rock the boat. Tara focuses her attention to her academic pursuits, where she is rewarded for her hard work.
When Tara is accepted into a study-abroad program at Cambridge, she experiences a profound sense of self-loathing. Though she is nurtured by Professor Jonathan Steinberg, Tara is unable to shake her imposter syndrome. Professor Steinberg notices Tara’s lack of self-confidence, and he draws a comparison between Tara and Eliza Doolittle, the protagonist of George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion. Just as Eliza defies the conventional notions of attraction and femininity, Tara is an atypical Cambridge student. In referencing Pygmalion, Professor Steinberg encourages Tara to embrace her unique background in order to better grow into herself.
Tara succeeds during her exchange program, and Professor Steinberg encourages her to return to Cambridge for graduate school. Tara applies to the prestigious Gates Cambridge scholarship, but she continues to feel as if she is unworthy of such achievements. When she is awarded the scholarship, Tara is approached by various press outlets for interviews. Although the reporters ask her about her educational journey, she chooses not to disclose any information about the circumstances of her upbringing. In this way, it is clear that Tara is still embarrassed of where she comes from. She continues to struggle finding a balance between her educational world and her family.
While completing an MPhil at Cambridge, Tara learns about the feminist movement. This historical understanding causes Tara to contemplate the gender discrimination she experienced throughout her childhood and adolescence. Gene consistently told Tara that “a woman’s place is in the home,” and Tara was conditioned to believe that women are second-class citizens. When Tara returns home for vacation, she is deeply bothered by Shawn’s misogynist treatment towards his wife, Emily. Though Tara attempts to advocate for Emily, she is not supported by the other women in her family (namely, Faye and Audrey). Although Tara feels the responsibility to intervene in Shawn’s relationship, she fears that a confrontation may compromise her safety.
