40 pages • 1-hour read
Today Will Be Different
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
The Tension Between the Self and Family
The tension between Eleanor and her family is central to the novel. She admits that she tends to let her emotions and behaviors get in the way of her relationships with her loved ones, particularly her husband, Joe, and sister, Ivy. At the beginning of the novel, she undertakes a set of resolutions with the view of improving herself and her relationships, and her efforts to keep these resolutions drive the novel’s action. Throughout the narrative, she realizes that she must find a way to balance her own needs with those of her loved ones.
Eleanor’s relationship with Joe is already strained when the story begins, and when Joe disappears, Eleanor blames herself for pushing him away. Though she tries to see the bright side of him leaving, she realizes that she loves and needs him. Joe is Eleanor’s foil and complement, and when she struggles with doubt and confusion, she relies on his rationality and certainty. Eleanor’s conflict with Joe reaches its peak after she finds him and learns the reason for his disappearance: He has become a born-again Christian and didn’t know how to tell her. She doesn’t recognize the man she married in this person who embraces mystery and ambiguity, and she accuses him of no longer being “the man [she] bought” (194). She also feels threatened by the idea that he no longer needs her: When he performs with his church group, she realizes that her anger at his religious conversion stems from her fear that “Joe [can] dive in anytime he [chooses], with or without [her]” (193). After her outburst and hospitalization, she realizes that she does not want to be in constant conflict with her family. She sees that Joe’s faith is important to him and that he is still the good, intelligent man she married. They agree that they will work through this change together, and Eleanor starts to become enthusiastic about moving abroad with him that so he can attend divinity school.
Eleanor also experiences tension in her relationship with Ivy because their needs are different. Nowhere is this more apparent than in their conflict over The Flood Girls. Eleanor creates The Flood Girls as a gift for Ivy, but Ivy is hurt that her sister has included such private and painful information in the autobiographical story. For her, the story is not cathartic but a difficult reminder of past experiences she has tried to put behind her. The sisters’ relationship is also strained by Bucky, who forces Ivy to choose between him and Eleanor. Ivy chooses Bucky, and Eleanor is so hurt that she cuts Ivy off and removes everything that reminds her of her sister. She even goes as far as to tell herself, “I don’t have a sister” (74). Her internalization of her pain leads her to act out in ways that hurt others, namely Timby and Joe. Since Ivy is only present in the narrative through flashbacks and in Eleanor’s thoughts, Eleanor never has the chance to confront her the way she confronts Joe. Their conflict therefore remains unresolved. However, Eleanor gains a new perspective on their relationship when she realizes that giving up on Ivy has only hurt her. At the end of the novel, Eleanor resolves to keep hoping for a reconciliation, saying, “I will never be done with Ivy. I don’t want to be done with Ivy. She’s my sister” (206). Even though they’ve had their differences, Eleanor loves Ivy and wants to keep her in her life.
The Gap Between Who One Is and Who One Wishes to Be
Eleanor’s greatest internal struggle in the novel results from the gap between the person she is and the person she wants to be. She attributes many of her dysfunctional habits and coping strategies to being the result of growing up with a neglectful father with an alcohol addiction, calling that experience “the single determining factor in [her] personality” (39). Her experiences with her father have made her deeply distrustful of others, and throughout the novel, she tries to overcome this, but Joe’s disappearance and her sudden memories of Ivy make it difficult for her to become the person she wants to be. These stressors cause her to make impulsive and unhealthy decisions, such as stealing the young mother’s keys because her daughter shares the same name as Ivy’s.
After Timby finds the keys, Eleanor realizes that her actions have hurt those around her and that she needs to make some changes. When she is driving to the community center to look for Joe, she tells Timby that she is worried she has been neglecting Joe and that he might have disappeared for that reason. Timby tells her that it is “just how [she is]” (160). Hearing this from her son causes Eleanor to break down, saying, “I don’t want to be that way […] I really don’t” (160). She feels that she has not been the wife Joe deserves or the mother Timby deserves, but Timby comforts her, encouraging her to keep working on this. Later, when she looks in the church for Joe, she realizes that she is turning 50 years old and that while she has been highly successful in her professional life, she has not succeeded in “loving well the people [she] love[s] the most” (168). She has been inattentive to her son, husband, and sister, and her carelessness has hurt all of them. At the end of the novel, Eleanor recommits to her resolutions and even adds some new ones, showing that she remains committed to working on herself. She recognizes that she may not always succeed in being her best self but that self-improvement is a continual process requiring a daily recommitment.
The Function of Family in Healing and Growth
Eleanor’s family plays an important role in helping her grow and heal from old wounds. While trying to see the upside of Joe’s possible abandonment, Eleanor realizes that she does not want him to leave and that she would be sad and hurt if he left. She then ponders the memories she has of Joe and Timby. She decides that it is “not the framed greatest hits, but the moments between” that she cherishes most (99). They remind her of the “calm […] ease […] comfort” of her life (99), beside which her fears, insecurities, and frustrations look small. Later, when she goes back to the museum to meet with Timby, she thinks about how the world is often cruel and difficult, but she promises to do her best to be a good mother for Timby and show him happiness and beauty. She thinks, “But I can be steady. I will show you kindness and bring you snow” (113). These thoughts help to reinvigorate her commitment to self-improvement, not only for herself but also for her husband and son.
After her outburst at the Key Arena, she thinks back to her behavior and asks Joe, “Do you think I’m a mean person?” (199). He replies, “You’re not a mean person […] You’re a mean nice person. Big difference” (199). Joe’s honest observation gives Eleanor an external perspective to show that she is a kind person who sometimes makes mistakes. This encourages her because she can work on and learn from her mistakes. Later, when Eleanor tells Timby about her estrangement from Ivy and Bucky, Timby assures her, “[T]hey know you […] But they don’t know me” (207). Timby’s reply hints that he might be able help them reconnect and repair their relationship in the process. By opening up about her emotions and past to Joe and Timby, Eleanor is able to begin healing from her pain and trauma and grow into a better version of herself.
Unlock every key theme and why it matters
Get in-depth breakdowns of the book’s main ideas and how they connect and evolve.
- Explore how themes develop throughout the text
- Connect themes to characters, events, and symbols
- Support essays and discussions with thematic evidence