Runner

“Her binder is plastered with stickers that read WAR IS TERRORISM and WAR SUCKS. When she was a junior, she wrote an article for the school newspaper about the rights of gay students.”

The stickers allude to Judith Butler’s argument that terrorism is a construct–– dominant countries use the label to sanctify their violence and villainize the violence of less powerful nations and organizations. Melissa’s article on LGBTQ+ rights also implies a critique of the Bush administration, which supported the Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA), a proposed constitutional amendment that would have defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

“Fighting isn’t the only way to be brave.”

Using blunt diction, Melissa addresses the motifs of bravery and cowardice. People can display courage without resorting to violence. Yet Deuker arguably undercuts the message as Chance’s dad becomes a hero through violence, and Chance decides to join the Army.

“But there was still the monthly moorage fee and the sewage fee and the electricity bill and the heat bill and food and soap and toilet paper and toothpaste and a hundred other things.”

The repetition of “and” highlights the number of things in Chance’s life that require money. The “and’s” pile up, like Chance’s financial burdens. The bills represent the adult responsibilities that Chance must take on because of his father’s alcohol addiction.

“One minute I’d want him to disappear from my life forever; the next I’d panic at the thought of being alone in the world.”

The father-son motif is fluid, with Chance’s attitude toward his father in flux. Sometimes, he wants him gone. At other moments, he wants him around.

“How could money be so easy to get for some people and so hard for others?”

The Intense Pressure of Money consumes Chance. He doesn’t understand why it’s accessible to some and out of reach for others. The financial pressure Chance and his father face motivates Chance to accept the “fat man’s” offer.

“[W]hen he wasn’t drinking, my dad was an OK guy and a good, hard worker. Besides, it wasn’t like he was applying to be a brain surgeon.”

Through diction, Chance establishes his dad’s decent character. Words like “OK guy” and “good, hard worker” show that he’s not a bad person. With the “brain surgeon” quip, Chance also reveals his sense of humor,

“There was no future in what he was proposing, but I wasn’t worried about the future. I was worried about next month.”

Chance knows that smuggling isn’t a sustainable career choice, yet The Intense Pressure of Money compels him to prioritize the immediate present over the hypothetical future. The money from smuggling gives him freedom and makes him feel like he can hang out with Melissa. Like most people in extreme situations, the focus for Chance is solving the challenges of the present.

“I wasn’t playing a game. This was for real. This was dangerous. Smugglers got busted; smugglers did time in prison. Sometimes, smugglers got themselves killed.”

With diction, Chance stresses The Suspicious, Dangerous World he’s entering. He’s not “playing a game”—the consequences are “real,” and he could go to jail or die. The repetition of “smugglers” dramatizes the harsh outcomes.

“So you don’t need your old man anymore for anything, do you?”

Chance’s dad addresses the theme of Escape from Hopelessness. Chance wants to separate from him and try to do something meaningful with his life. His dad’s question adds a bit of guilt to the mix.

“I’m not paranoid, Melissa. I just don’t like being spied on.”

The September 11 attacks created an atmosphere of suspicion, with people worrying about further terrorist violence. The government created a vast spying program, surveilling many people for flimsy reasons. Yet Chance should be paranoid and worried about people spying on him because he’s doing something illicit.

“Thomas snorted in disgust. ‘I can see the headline now: Terrorists at Shilshole! A Lincoln Light Exclusive.’”

Thomas makes fun of the possibility of a terrorist attack in Seattle. The irony is that there is a terrorist plot in Seattle.

“It was just a coincidence that he sped up as I opened the door, nothing more. I was making a whole lot out of nothing.”

Chance isn’t an unreliable narrator, but occasionally, he tries to convince himself that his situation is less dangerous than it is. He tells himself the speeding Mercedes isn’t a threat, but the skeptical reader might think otherwise. Such moments also add an element of suspense.

“I thought if it was a great newspaper it might help me get into Stanford, but the whole thing is going to be a total failure.”

Though Melissa has plenty of money, she still faces The Intense Pressure of Money. Her privilege produces expectations, and she stresses about getting into a prestigious college like Stanford. Money does not make her invulnerable to teenage pressures and worries about the future.

“I mean, who would have ever thought that September eleventh would happen?”

The quip from Chance’s dad is tragically ironic. The twist is that the Bush administration had intelligence that Osama bin Laden planned to attack the United States, and both the administration and US intelligence agencies were widely criticized for their failure to prevent the attack.

“I was taking risks, but I knew what they were and I knew why I was taking them. Melissa was walking into this thing blind. I had to get her off my track.”

Chance juxtaposes his awareness of danger with Melissa’s ignorance. By pushing her away, he bravely tries to protect her from harm.

“From the first day the fat man talked to me, I knew I was being used by people who didn’t care what happened to me.”

Part of what makes the world a dangerous, suspicious place is exploitation. People use one another and don’t care about their well-being. The Intense Pressure of Money makes people like Chance vulnerable to predatory situations.

“Who was I kidding? If I were still working at Ray’s, I’d have no extra money in my pocket to do anything with anybody. Besides, Melissa lived in a different world; there was no way I was ever getting in.”

Chance uses hyperbole to describe the seemingly unbridgeable social distances that rise from economic inequality. In his worldview, there is “no way” Chance could ever be a part of Melissa’s affluent world.

“To think that just a few minutes earlier I’d believed I was involved with al-Qaida and explosives, and all the time the packages had contained gems. Nobody ever got killed by a sapphire.”

Once again, Chance tries to convince himself that his situation is less dangerous than it is. He chooses to believe the “fat guy” because he needs the money he is earning. His dismissive quip, “nobody ever got killed by a sapphire,” suggests a willfully simplistic understanding of violence and criminality.

“Because how could I explain to her that I wanted somebody to give me orders, that I wanted somebody to tell me what to do? Kids like Melissa—they couldn’t wait to get out on their own, to make their own decisions. I’d been doing that for a long time, and I was worn out by it.”

The repetition of “wanted” and “somebody” indicates that Chance craves structure and discipline. His dad lets him do whatever he wants, and the independence makes him feel dispirited and hopeless. He’s tired of it.

“I was a good soldier under fire. It was the other times I had trouble with.”

Though Melissa claims fighting doesn’t equal bravery, the story continues to suggest otherwise. Chance’s dad establishes his courage by telling Chance the Army didn’t kick him out for cowardly conduct during battles.

“You’re right, Chance. You do have to make up for what you’ve done. But serving time is not the only way to do that. And it’s not close to being the best way.”

Melissa’s dad alludes to debates about the prison system. He suggests that there are healthier and more effective ways to atone for bad behavior than by serving time in prison. He leaves it up to Chance to decide how to atone even as he takes prison off the table.

“They wanted me to stay. And it made sense, in a fairy-tale sort of way. They would take me into their magic house and make me a part of their magic family.”

Chance ties together the themes of Escape from Hopelessness and The Intense Pressure of Money. If Chance lived with Melissa’s affluent family, the wealth would pressure him and take away his hope of creating a life that had meaning to him. He needs to find his own escape instead of being saved by others’ generosity.

“It was my life—both good and bad—and nothing was going to take it away from me.”

Chance resists the pressure of money and, using hyperbole, asserts control over his life. Nobody and “nothing” can stop him from pursuing his truth.