Midnight at the Electric

“We’re a house full of secrets. The main secret is that we are afraid.”

Catherine uses the concept of secrets to implicitly describe her family. By doing so, she shows that her family members are reserved and insecure, and she foreshadows later events. The mention of secrets hints at her feelings toward Ellis and the hidden truth that Lenore is her mother. The mention of the family’s fear is tied to the Dust Bowl conditions; they are scared they will not make it through the Dust Bowl but are also scared to leave.

“The other thing she told us is something I can barely stomach to think about: a man who goes to our church was found under the dirt two days ago, dead. He’d gotten caught up in a duster while driving to Wichita and tried to run to safety from his car. He got buried alive.”

This description in Catherine’s diary serves multiple purposes. It helps develop the setting and reflects the historical context of the Dust Bowl. It adds tension by showing how dangerous the conditions are and influences later tension when Beth is caught outside in a sudden dust storm. The remark also helps connect the different timelines of the book through the mention of Wichita, which is where Adri is studying to become a Mars Colonist.

“And I watched Beezie take my chance at living forever.”

When Catherine first went to the Ragbag fair, she wanted to touch the electricity so that she could have eternal life. By using the 10 dollars from Ellis to pay for Beezie to touch the electricity, Catherine is symbolically trading her life for Beezie’s. This characterizes Catherine as a loving sister, as well as hopeful but naïve.

“The secret is that I don’t think the Electric has worked at all, and I don’t know if I ever truly thought it would.”

The experience at the Electric juxtaposes two conflicting emotions—hope and skepticism. Catherine hopes that the electricity can cure Beezie, but, deep down, she knows it will not. The juxtaposed emotions serve to depict Catherine’s desperation. She is trying anything she can think of to save her little sister’s life.

“The house is a tomb, and I am buried inside.”

Anderson uses two metaphors, or direct figurative comparisons, to describe Lenore’s feelings. The concepts of the tomb and being buried reflect both the trapped feelings Lenore is experiencing and Teddy’s death.

“I’ve decided to stay true to my word and not tell a soul about him, even though he could be a thief or a murderer or both.”

Lenore’s remark foreshadows her later discovery that James is a criminal and not a war hero. Her decision to keep James’s existence to herself and to let him use the cottage also helps characterize her. She is depicted as compassionate though skeptical, and her decision suggests that she is a risk-taker, which is also supported by her desire to leave her home and follow Beth to America.

“Someone rubbed Father’s shoes in manure last week when he’d taken them off outside the factory door to change into work boots. It’s related to either labor or contamination of the river or both.”

The author uses satire to criticize the Industrial Revolution and to emphasize its negative consequences. Industrialization is used to connect the themes of Environmental Destruction for the Sake of Progress and The Interconnectedness of Human Experiences Across Time. The industrialization taking place during Lenore’s timeline contributes to the Dust Bowl conditions of Catherine's timeline and to the severe environmental degradation depicted in Adri’s timeline.

“When I really thing about Teddy, when I really let myself think about him, I want to eat people alive.”

Lenore’s reaction to her brother’s death reflects the common idea that everyone deals with grief in their own way. She has been trying to suppress her grief; at first, she thought it made her stronger than other people, but as she is writing this, she appears to feel wicked, comparing herself to the witch in “Hansel and Gretel.”

“Grief becomes you; it wraps you up and changes you and makes everything—every little thing—different than it was before.”

Grief is a prominent concept running through Lenore’s storyline. The grief is centered around Teddy’s death and her distance from Beth, and it contributes to the theme of Resilience in the Face of Adversity.

“In the house, there was plenty of evidence of their lives. She now knew that the dusty copies of Grimm’s Fairy Tales and Ethan Frome had been Lenore’s and then Beth’s.”

Lily’s house, the items inside of it, and Galapagos all help represent The Interconnectedness of Human Experiences Across Time. Adri struggles to connect with others, but she feels connected to Catherine, Beezie, Beth, and Lenore through the letters, journals, and items in the house. This connection impacts her character arc, helping her to connect with other people.

“Would it have changed anything if she’d known? Would she have turned out to be better—just better in general at all the things she was bad at with people—if she’d had someone in her life like Lily? Would she have been better at touching someone on the hand to console them? Would she be going to Mars at all?”

This series of questions demonstrates that Adri is struggling with her sense of identity. She wonders if she would be a different person if Lily had reached out earlier. This reinforces Adri’s earlier assertions that she had spent years trying to change herself but failed to do so. She reflects that she is going far away to Mars because she feels accustomed to being far away from other human beings, but she wonders if a close connection with someone could have changed this trait. Uncovering her true self and her true desires is a significant component of Adri’s character arc.

“It’s a great feeling, isn’t it? When someone in the house stays awake after you?”

Lily’s remark is a subtle form of characterization that depicts her loneliness. Lily, who is very social and loving, has been living by herself for a decade. Having Adri around is helping Lily feel an intimate connection. Their developing relationship reflects the basic human need for social interaction, which is something both characters have been lacking.

“As they ate popcorn and watched TV, Adri was quiet, but not unhappy, her knees up to her chin and her arms folded around them.”

Anderson implicitly portrays Adri’s emotional reaction through descriptions of Adri’s feelings and body positioning. The linguistic choice of calling Adri “not unhappy” implies that the experience is positive but that Adri is not altogether comfortable. This is reinforced by her body positioning, which suggests she is making herself small and covering herself to provide a sort of protection. She is transitioning away from social isolation, slowly learning how to interact more comfortably with others.

“I think you’re thinking the whole thing is a lose-lose Like, what if someone actually likes you? That causes all sorts of problems. Then each time you see them, you have to try and keep them. And then even if you manage that, you lose. You end up losing. Even if you go through all the work of accepting someone and occasionally looking like a fool in front of them and then figuring out if they can accept you and you can forgive each other for everything you screw up, you lose them eventually.”

Lily’s speech serves two purposes. It further develops her character, demonstrating that she is observant, insightful, wise, and compassionate. It also impacts Adri’s character arc by illustrating why Adri isolates herself. Lily has years of life experience guiding her wisdom, and she is able to pass on this advice to help Adri, contributing to both The Quest for Belonging and Acceptance and The Interconnectedness of Human Experiences Across Time.

“For all my anger with James for not staring death in the face by fighting in the war, I couldn’t even get on a boat.”

Lenore’s character arc is based on her emerging self-awareness. At first, she suppresses her feelings, particularly her grief for Teddy. She avoids her painful emotions, and in doing so, she does not process them. Her remark here demonstrates her personal growth, showing that she has learned to recognize her own fear, judgment, and hypocrisy. She has become more compassionate and understanding toward others and their mistakes.

“I guess people are right when they say that time helps grief. I don’t agree that it heals, but maybe it wraps our losses up deeper and deeper inside so we can get on with being alive.”

Lenore has come to understand her relationship with grief. Becoming more self-aware allows her to process her grief so that she can move on with her life. Her growth and perseverance contribute to Resilience in the Face of Adversity.

“Ellis, they say it’s us who have torn up the land. If that’s true, how could we have such power to destroy? And can we ever fix it?”

Catherine asks Ellis two rhetorical questions about humans having the power to destroy and restore the environment. Rhetorical questions are a literary device that encourages readers to think critically. In this case, the questions may inspire readers to consider humans’ impact on the planet and the theme of Environmental Destruction for the Sake of Progress. While the text emphasizes the historic Dust Bowl, the rhetorical questions and thematic elements are relevant to modern society, which is facing increasing complications from climate change.

“I want Beezie to be the lucky one. I am so selfish for her welfare I think I could smother anyone who got in the way, and I know that’s evil, and yet I can’t feel any other way.”

Catherine’s remark is ironic. She describes herself as selfish, but her actions prove otherwise. She leaves behind Ellis and everything else she has ever known, taking it upon herself to attempt to save Beezie. Her decisions show that she is selfless, compassionate, brave, and resourceful.

“And I’ve decided I have to reach for what I want even if my hands are trembling from fear.”

Catherine’s character arc centers on her bravery and her ability to trust her instincts. At the beginning of her storyline, she is hesitant and passive. Her love for Beezie and her intense desire to protect Beezie push Catherine into trusting herself and leaving home to save her sister’s life. By supporting herself and Beezie in New York, she strengthens the lesson, learning that she can rely on herself and that it is worth it to pursue her dreams.

“They were the last of a family line that had wound its way through a woman who cut her hair because it was in the way, and saved someone who’d needed saving, and brought a dead farm back to life.”

Adri’s character arc centers around her ability to connect with others. As a child, she was orphaned and did not meet any relatives until she met Lily. By living with Lily and by reading through the letters, Adri forms an emotional connection with her ancestor Sofia, the Godspeeds, and Lenore. Her arc contributes to The Interconnectedness of Human Experiences Across Time, and her newfound ability to connect with people provides a resolution for The Quest for Belonging and Acceptance.

“You’ll realize how to be free if you just give it a little while. It can hurt a little bit, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t right.”

Lily’s parting words to Galapagos relate to all the storylines and main characters. Galapagos’ arc mirrors the plot lines of Adri, Catherine, and Lenore. All three human characters and Galapagos have to deal with uncontrollable life events, but they all manage to find freedom, though that freedom is not painless.

“The contrast of Adri’s small warm bunk, her blankets around her that night…and what lay beyond the glass: the immensity of space, the hazy blue planet she was leaving, suddenly small and far away. It was like looking out at a rainstorm from a warm, dry house, and thinking of everyone else outside, exposed to the sky.”

Anderson uses juxtaposition, imagery, and a simile to describe the uncommon experience of riding in a space shuttle. The descriptions emphasize Adri’s uncertainty and increase the tension. These tones are balanced by the mention of Adri’s cozy bunk and the comparison of the shuttle to a house during a rainstorm, which suggests Adri is safe.

“The house was quiet. But also full. She guessed that was why people had housewarmings. Adri had warmed her house.”

Lily’s reaction to Adri leaving deepens her characterization. Rather than focusing on her recent losses—Galapagos and Adri—Lily feels a warmth in her home. This reinforces the idea that she is happy for both Adri and Galapagos and characterizes her as resilient and optimistic.