Psychiatric institutionalization
The novel showcases the controversial nature of mental institutions during the 20th century before deinstitutionalization. It highlights the institutional abuse and use of unethical practices to subdue or treat the patients. The protagonist has violent impulses but the diagnosis she receives at the asylum exaggerates her condition as psychotic. Therefore, the narrative illustrates the medical practices by Dr. Redding to experiment on Connie by performing brain surgery. By contrast, Mattapoisett is described as a place of free will and personal autonomy on matters of their mental health and institutionalization.
Intersectionality
The narrative juxtaposes 1970s New York with the utopian future in 2137 to highlight the societal differences. It focuses on issues of gender, race, and social class to demonstrate the social issues that afflict Connie’s reality. She is a woman and person of color struggling with finances; thus, she undergoes the discrimination and prejudice that accompany those aspects. To highlight the intersectionality in her present, the narrative describes Mattapoisett as a future where everything is neutral. Moreover, Connie’s vision shows her alternate dystopian futures where aspects of social identities are at their worst extremes.
Egalitarianism
Mattapoisett is a classless civilization that has embraced gender neutrality as opposed to our society. There is no power dynamics as dominance upon another individual is nonexistent. Connie lives in a reality that is plagued by racial prejudice, female oppression, and economic disparity. Through her struggles with these social issues, she imagines an egalitarian future that does not ostracize its people.
Individual freedom
The conflict in the story originates from the protagonist’s lack of self-autonomy by being stripped of her freedom. The decision to be admitted to a mental asylum is taken from her and institutionalized involuntarily the second time. Furthermore, Dolly is seen having no individual freedom with a pimp dictating her life decisions and whereabouts. On the other hand, the utopian future describes a civilization where every individual has total freedom. They can mold their life to their own preferences including the naming process.
Social justice
The narrative takes place during a period that saw the rise of second-wave feminism, the civil rights movement, and social justice movements. Connie is part of this zeitgeist as she fights to liberate herself from the shackles of patriarchy, racism, and other injustices. Thus, the visions of the utopian future act as a reference and motivation towards liberating herself and society. Although her efforts are futile, the impression of her will is evident and pronounced.