Cavak answers “Did anyone else get the sense that (apart...”

Laura Simonite asked this question about Queenie:

Did anyone else get the sense that (apart from Kyazike) all of her friends' relationships where similarly dysfunctional? Obviously we saw Cassandra's fall apart, but there were lots of hints that Darcy's was problematic too. Was it character development that Queenie never thought to probe when hints were dropped do you think?

Cavak The book's real themes were how damaging racial stereotypes can be in two different cultures, especially when the only identity formed within oneself …moreThe book's real themes were how damaging racial stereotypes can be in two different cultures, especially when the only identity formed within oneself is "not truly belonging." It extends to all of her relationships throughout the book, including her disastrous romance with Tom and her one night stands.

Queenie's in-character reasoning for not probing is because she feels too overwhelmed to try with wholehearted support and earnest. It happens when you're severely depressed and feeling powerless about yourself. For the most part, it feels crushingly impossible. She gets a little better by the end.

Darcy's the kind and sensitive friend. Yet when it comes to the racial issues, she means well but can't completely relate to Queenie's dilemmas because she's "colorblind" (in a loving way) for the most part. So, Queenie's subconsciously holding back about her "what it means to be black" issues with her.

Kyazike is probably the most emotionally stable and supportive friend to Queenie's values. She represents the person who Queenie wants to match in confidence and identity. Yet she sometimes projects her values onto Queenie during their chats that make her uncomfortable. Like the "You should just go back to black" attitude and "This is my side, you need to know your side."

So, those tiny defects in her relationships were efforts to expand the cast from being too flat. Since nobody's perfect and it's realistic. Everyone's meant to contribute to the question of what race may mean for a woman growing up nowadays. That's kinda how I took the creative choices about what details to include and omit about the characters and their dysfunctional relationships.(less)

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