The Green Glass Sea

While Suze and Dewey, in a typically childlike way, are preoccupied with social dynamics, their artistic and mechanical projects, and their respective parents, Klages draws the reader’s attention to the broader historical context. The reader is reminded through Papa’s meeting at the Hill and then at the White House that the Manhattan Project is driven by the US government, which hopes that a weapon of mass destruction can be developed to bring the war to a close: “General Groves is here with some committee from Washington. Oppie [Robert Oppenheimer] asked if I’d meet with them, I guess to fill them in on what my section’s been doing” (107).

Furthermore, the reader is reminded that America perceives itself to be in an arms race with Germany and is terrified that Germany will develop an atomic weapon first, as Papa explains to Dewey: “A lot of the work we’re doing here, on the Hill, is based on discoveries German scientists made in the thirties. So it’s likely Josef and the others are trying to solve the same problems. But god help us if they get there first” (124). For this reason, Dewey’s Papa is summoned to the White House to review documents acquired from Munich; his expertise is sought to ascertain whether German scientists are close to developing an atomic bomb. This weapons race against Germany links to the theme of The Ethical Implications of Scientific Discovery. The strain of an arms race, centered on the creation of a weapon with the power to kill millions, is demonstrated in Dewey’s Papa’s exhaustion; it is uncharacteristic for him to drink a lot, but he explains that: “I just didn’t want to think about the war for a while. I didn’t want to think about any of this” (116).

The Nazi program of antisemitic genocide is referred to in Dewey and Papa’s conversation; despite his exhaustion and misgivings, Papa is motivated to develop the bomb because of his belief that scientists should be able to learn and share in freedom, without danger of persecution or murder: “‘If we win this war, I’ll always be free to do what I love. To solve problems, to teach, to share my discoveries. A lot of my colleagues can’t. Some of them have died for it.’ ‘Because they did math?’ ‘Because they were Jewish’” (124).

The Gordons are likely also motivated in their work on the Manhattan Project by an ethical condemnation of Nazi party policies; subtle clues (such as “the box of colored pencils Grandpa Weiss had sent [Suze] for Hanukkah” (126)) tell the reader that the Gordons are Jewish, and would therefore be especially motivated to participate in a war that aims to defeat the Nazi party. This is also hinted at in the Gordons’ ashtray, which mocks and derides Hitler: “Her mother lit a Chesterfield and put the match into the ashtray Daddy had given her for Christmas, a square of glass with a picture of a skunk with Hitler’s face. JAM YOUR BUTTS ON THIS SKUNK” (126).

Further historical context is provided in these chapters through the death of Roosevelt. Klages emphasizes the state of national mourning after the death of this seemingly invincible and integral figure through the flags “flying at half-mast” and the crying people: “Women sat on the stoops of the apartment buildings, talking softly, hugging each other, weeping. Most of the people Dewey saw had been crying, even the soldiers” (161).

Through Dewey and Suze’s developing relationship, the theme of Social Inclusion and Exclusion and the Importance of Human Connection is referred to. Suze makes her reluctance to host Dewey clear. Dewey notices Suze’s passive-aggressive act of marking off the days Dewey has to stay with them: “She realized that the first X was on the day that Papa had left. Suze was tallying the days Dewey had been there, like a convict in a Saturday Evening Post cartoon marking off his sentence on the stone prison walls” (147). Suze’s drawing of the chalk line down the middle of her bedroom symbolizes her reluctance to interact with or be associated with Dewy. Similarly, Suze gives Dewey strict instructions to stay away from her at school, illustrating Suze’s preoccupation with social ranking and status; Suze doesn’t want her popularity to suffer through association with Dewey, who is ridiculed and excluded at school: “‘You better not walk with me,’ Suze had said on their first school day together. ‘And don’t even think about eating lunch with me’” (147).

Through Suze’s characterization and her behavior toward Dewey, Klages emphasizes how bullies are often victims of social exclusion and are driven by deep-seated insecurity. Suze’s exclusion is noted by Dewey, who is not as acutely affected by her status as an outsider: “Sometimes Dewey felt sorry for Suze, because the other girls didn’t ask her to play very often” (148). Suze isn’t playing with the other girls but is “standing nearby and pretending that she would be, any minute” (148). Suze is motivated by a desire for approval when she knocks the cigar box out of Dewey’s hands, as is illustrated by Suze’s smile at the other girls: “Suze looked over at the other girls, to see if they were watching. When Suze saw that they were, she smiled. A smile of bravado, overdone and insincere. And Dewey knew it had been no accident” (149). By othering Dewey, Suze hopes to be included by the other girls. Suze’s immaturity is foregrounded by this cruel behavior. In later chapters, Suze will instead seek to find inclusion and companionship through kindness and loyalty to Dewey, which will illustrate her coming of age.

A shift in the girls’ relationship is apparent as they start to take an interest in each other’s projects, such as when Suze sits with Dewey on her bed and asks about her wind-up man. It is symbolic that Suze sits on Dewey’s bed, as Suze used to despise the idea of the chalk line through the middle of the bedroom being crossed by either girl. Furthermore, Suze conveys a symbolic acceptance of Dewey’s collections of gadgets and parts (which she used to mock) by playing with them: “Suze sat on the bed, Indian-style, and sifted through the assortment of tiny metal objects, making piles of her own” (173). In return, Dewey praises Suze’s artistic creations and finds a shoebox lid so that Suze can keep working on it; through this, Dewey conveys praise and acceptance of Suze’s project in return. Instead of letting their differences alienate them from each other, the girls start to celebrate their respective strengths.

Suze and Dewey’s blossoming friendship is also conveyed in their symbolic handshake—across the chalk line—which formalizes their mutual promise to keep each other’s secret: “They shook hands across the narrow gap between the beds, then disengaged with a faint moist sound” (167). Through their respective goodnights, they bond over their newfound knowledge about the other’s names: “‘G’night...Twelve,’ said Suze with a chuckle. ‘G’night, Curie,’ Dewey replied” (167). Science continues to act as a recurring motif; the girls bond and identify more with each other because they are both named after scientific concepts or figures.