The Institute

Luke’s assessment of himself as an investment for the Broderick School for Exceptional Children foreshadows the Institute’s treatment of him and the other kidnapped children as commodities. Luke recognizes that he lives in a world where those who have money and influence see others in terms of utility rather than personhood. He accepts this fact with equanimity and grace, his sense of personal responsibility motivating him to support the Broderick School when he has the means to do so.

Luke’s encounter with his fellow SAT-taker serves two purposes: First of all, it illustrates Luke recognizing the complexity of the adult world (i.e., life is a test with dozens of possible answers). Secondly, the incident resurfaces when he speaks to the mysterious Mr. Smith at the end of the novel. Luke sees a parallel between his fellow SAT-taker’s error and that of the Institute: Like the girl, the Institute operates on a wrong answer because they started with a faulty equation.

The Institute’s ability to perfectly recreate the children’s bedrooms demonstrates their power: The staff would have had to photograph every object and its placement before locating or manufacturing replicas. This effort implies a staggering amount of money, personnel, and coordination. The bedrooms are likely intended to provide emotional stability, but if anything, this manufactured familiarity in an otherwise alien environment only increases the children’s disorientation and sense of powerlessness.

The posters in the hallway are another example of cruelty and domination disguised as benevolence. On the surface, they appear uplifting, urging the children to overcome their circumstances. Underneath, they are a form of gaslighting—denying the children’s experience and blaming them for their own unhappiness, as if they have no right to resent the abuse they (or in Luke’s case, are about to) suffer.

Luke’s reference to Pinocchio’s Pleasure Island foreshadows the dehumanization of the children. In Pinocchio, “bad” boys are taken to Pleasure Island where they smoke, drink, and engage in other debauchery. As they degrade themselves, they lose the power of thought and speech and turn into donkeys—after which they are sold as beasts of burden. It is the fate of all Institute children to be tested and weaponized to the point of losing their minds. By the time they are moved from Back Half to Ward A, they are merely “donkeys” eating out of troughs like animals and furthering the path laid out by their master.

No one who works for the Institute escapes its corruption, as it operates like a cult, manipulating its members into thinking they are engaged in a crusade to save the world. The staff members are told that their cause justifies any crime or sin. Kalisha describes Maureen as the only adult who can be trusted—when in fact, she is a spy for the administration. The children’s trust makes Maureen’s dishonesty all the more insidious; the children at least know where they stand with the openly abusive staff. However, Maureen’s position as a spy requires her to get close to the children, which leaves her vulnerable to Luke’s kindness later on.