Dreamland

When Rogerson hits Caitlin for the first time, it is the start of a consistent cycle of physical abuse. Before this incident, Dessen begins showing Caitlin anticipating Rogerson’s moods, showing how the cycle has already started. Caitlin has an unnaturally heightened attunement to Rogerson’s needs, worrying about his anger that she will be late before the winter ceremony at school. Afterwards, she pushes aside family and friends to see him. When she tries to play it off, however, she triggers something within Rogerson when she calls him a “baby” (143), and he strikes her for the first time. It is likely that her playful terming of him as a baby mimics the abuse that Rogerson has experienced from his own father. This is a critical transition in the novel, and the remaining scenes in these chapters emphasize the significant impact of The Causes and Impacts of Dating Violence for Caitlin.

Dessen portrays Rogerson and Caitlin’s relationship using a common pattern of abusive relationships. Rogerson’s continued verbal and physical abuse of Caitlin is balanced by his apologies and gifts, and there is a quiet waiting period each time where Caitlin feels like she will be safe. Throughout the cycle, Caitlin’s hypervigilance becomes more heightened as the consequences of minor missteps become more serious. The New Year’s Eve incident shows this escalation, with Rogerson assaulting her more seriously and her feeling like she can’t be fully safe around him again. The increase in abuse is counteracted by Caitlin finally having sex with Rogerson, trying to figure out a way to be close to him that might keep him from being as violent toward her. Dessen’s consistent portrayal of Caitlin’s coping mechanisms—from predicting Rogerson’s reactions, to reciting trivia, to having sex with him—shows the complex psychological toll of abuse and the ways that victims of abuse often go through to try to maintain a semblance of safety and stability.

Despite the visible hints of her abuse, Caitlin’s parents don’t notice her or figure out that anything is wrong. This is a tension of the novel that both reflects the genre of the text and Dessen’s intention in how Caitlin’s story plays out. As a young adult novel, Dessen centers the plot on teen relationships, with parents becoming secondary figures in Caitlin’s life. Additionally, Dessen creates a conflict that must be resolved by the teenage protagonist. When Caitlin goes to Applebee’s instead of confiding in her parents, she sets in motion a series of interactions where she will avoid her family in preference to talking with Cass in her journal or spending time with Corinna and smoking marijuana. Caitlin’s escape from her parents’ care is an important component of her psychological reaction to abuse, as well as a consistent facet of a young adult novel’s plot, illustrating the complexity of Parent-Child Relationships as Caitlin navigates adolescence.

In Chapter 8, Caitlin spends a significant amount of time watching Corinna’s relationship with Dave. This is the only peer relationship that Caitlin observes where there is a semblance of a healthy partnership, and where there are no hints of control or violence. Corinna and Dave’s relationship is juxtaposed with Caitlin’s own relationship with Rogerson; though Caitlin feels like Corinna, she starts to see cracks in how Rogerson treats her as opposed to how Dave treats Corinna. This is highlighted when Rogerson gifts Caitlin a beautiful necklace. Despite the possible parallel between the necklace and Corinna’s bracelets from Dave, Caitlin instead feels like there is a building rift between her and Rogerson. Knowing Corinna is an important part of Caitlin’s life, because it helps support her to eventually know that she doesn’t want to be in an abusive relationship.