Dreamland

With the novel peaking in these chapters, the impact of abuse is fully realized as Caitlin experiences violent abuse from Rogerson. Rogerson’s extreme physical violence happens more publicly than before, illustrating his total loss of control. Often, as depicted here, perpetrators of abuse escalate their behavior over time, putting their victims at risk of death. Though Caitlin is saved in Chapter 12, Dessen’s choice to include such an explicit scene is an important aspect of the novel’s message about how abuse impacts people. Caitlin’s psychological state is front and center in these chapters, as she panics about Rogerson’s reactions and is unable to enjoy any time with friends or family as a result of her relationship with him. In the final moments before they are fully separated, Caitlin is only focused on seeing Rogerson, demonstrating the impact of dating violence. Even though she knows this isn’t healthy, she is conditioned by the cycle of abuse to be centered on his feelings and presence. This is a critical portrayal of the complexities of how abuse impacts victims, including making them align with their abuser even when they experience extreme physical harm.

There is a distinct shift in the characterization of both of Caitlin’s parents in Chapter 12, as they react with intense emotion to seeing their daughter be abused. Caitlin’s mother is the one who finds her, and she is portrayed shouting at Rogerson and saying softly, “I should have known” (218) and rocking her daughter in her arms. This tenderness is not shown in many other moments of the book, marking a change in the way Mrs. O’Koren is able to see her daughter and shifting Parent-Child Relationships. For Caitlin, although she doesn’t know it yet, this is an important turning point through which she will find healing with both of her parents, and, eventually, her sister.

In the climactic scene in Chapter 12, the desire to escape emerges as a theme that Caitlin has been pushing down until this point. She clutches the sand from the park in her pocket, thinking about Corinna and Cass. As Caitlin pictures both of these older female role models, she imagines them successfully in their escape from the mundane. Meanwhile, Caitlin thinks about herself as “left behind again” (215) and feels completely incapable of moving. For Caitlin, the pattern of abuse with Rogerson has rendered her completely removed from her own dreams and motivations. Yet her healing process is also foreshadowed here, as she imagines what other women can find, and she will eventually find her own escape from Rogerson and her experience of violence.

Unlike earlier chapters in the novel, Chapters 11 and 12, which conclude “Rogerson,” are more linear. Events happen one at a time, and Caitlin carefully tracks time and interactions. This structure lulls the reader into a sense of stability and monotony and makes clear Caitlin’s dissociation: She is simply going through the motions. The logical flow of events also fits with the larger pattern of abuse; rather than be surprised by Rogerson’s anger and violence, Caitlin is used to it and can predict it easily. As Chapter 12 concludes, the novel shifts to a third and final section, focused on “Me,” in which Caitlin can finally heal.