Between Sisters

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of cursing, sexual content, child abuse, illness, death, and mental illness.

“‘My sister and I have problems, I’ll admit it. But nothing major. We’re just too busy to get together.’ When Harriet didn’t speak, Meghann rushed in to fill the silence. ‘Okay, she makes me crazy, the way she’s throwing her life away. She’s smart enough to do anything, but she stays tied to that loser campground they call a resort.’”

Meg’s dialogue with her therapist, Harriet Bloom, provides insight into her character’s interiority. Meg is in a state of denial—brushing off her and Claire’s “problems” as busyness. At the same time, Meg is holding judgments of her sister’s life—deeming her work at the resort a concession; she refers to the camp as a “loser campground,” which is a derogatory way of describing the place. Furthermore, Meg rushes “in to fill the silence” when Harriet doesn’t speak—a habit that shows her controlling personality and discomfort with leaving space in her relationships.

“It was true. Meghann had achieved every goal she’d set for herself. When she’d started college as a scared, lonely teenager she’d dared to dream of a better life. Now she had it. Her practice was among the most successful and most respected in the city. She owned an expensive condo in downtown Seattle […] and no one depended on her.”

Meg’s reflections on her life in the present reveal her loneliness. While Meg has “achieved every goal” she’s set for herself, she has “no one depending on her.” This dynamic implies that Meg understands herself as a caretaker. Her life thus feels meaningless despite her accomplishments and financial stability, because she has no one to take care of. The passage foreshadows the interpersonal work Meg will have to do to open her heart and enrich her life.

“Claire hadn’t thought much about her solitude since Alison’s birth. Yes, she’d been alone—in the sense that she’d never been married or lived with a man, but she rarely felt lonely. Oh, she noticed it, ached sometimes for someone to share her life, but she’d made that choice a long time ago. She wouldn’t be like her mother.”

Claire’s internal monologue reveals her avoidant personality. Claire doesn’t want to admit that she’s lonely because she is afraid of putting her emotional needs before her daughter’s. She has vowed not to “be like her mother” and has established her life and identity around this self-promise.