61 pages • 2 hours read
Good Kings Bad Kings
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 Value of Social Advocacy and Self-Sufficiency
Perhaps the biggest theme in Good Kings Bad Kings is the idea of self-sufficiency through social advocacy. Independence is elusive for many of the characters, who are either physically or mentally impaired and are unable to perform many actions that able-bodied citizens take for granted. However, Nussbaum challenges the stereotype that disabled youth are incapable of taking care of themselves by portraying characters who are able to develop control and autonomy through their actions and ideology. Joanne is a prominent character in this aspect because she is the first to introduce the idea of self-sufficiency, constantly challenging the system in order to express her liberation. She makes her own decisions in order to show she is in control and refuses to be labeled by others. For example, she refers to herself and other disabled people as “crips.” Though this may initially seem self-degrading, it turns out to be self-empowering, an act of reclamation through self-selection. Her push back against the way others may view her as weak or feeble actually makes her stronger by reversing a social expectation. In another instance, she explains how she doesn’t want to become overly dependent on Ricky after they have been dating for so long:
I appreciate the luxury of having someone to pull off my weather stripping. And under the heading of ‘Weather Stripping’ I include tightening the pipes under the sink, unjamming the paper shredder, catching stray spiders and introducing them back into the wild, and the rest of the very large family of tasks I’m unable to do for myself. The thing is, all these things, except the spiders, were getting done before Ricky came into my life. I don’t want to forget how long it took for me to become self-sufficient again after being injured. I always want to be self-sufficient. You never know how long anything might last (234).
Clearly, Joanne values her sense of adult independence. She references how she was able to do many things before Ricky came into her life, and furthermore, how she wants to continue being “self-sufficient” if their relationship ends.
Joanne’s strength and confidence rubs off on the youth at ILLC, who view her as a role model. In the case of Yessenia, she slowly begins to emulate Joanne’s ideas and turns them into practice when she decides to start a protest. The protest is a manifestation of everything Joanne embodies about challenging social norms to take control through self-advocacy. In more than one way, characters who were previously denied their independence (i.e. not being able to ride an elevator or go outside without permission) prove they are capable beyond common institutional expectations. This lesson teaches readers that when we deny any group of people the ability to make decisions for themselves, they are more likely to fall victim to systemic injustice; however, when we empower each other with the ability to make critical choices and properly care for one another, positive changes can be made.
The Harmful Effects of Corporate Politics and Capitalism
Whitney-Palm is in charge of running “business” in places like ILLC. Once run by the state, profit-based companies now direct mental health and nursing homes. This novel is a scathing criticism of this aspect of American’s health care system, exposing how corporate politics and capitalistic greed can lead to the literal deaths of America’s must vulnerable patients. A cast of antagonists who are more concerned with making money than actually helping the patients become villains in the story when they essentially try to suppress the reality of how murderous their company is. Tim (a shamelessly rich mogul at Whitney-Palm), Dr. Caviolini (the corrupt medical specialist), and to an extent, Michelle (the naive yet greedy recruiter) portray just how nefarious and heartless the health care business is. These members ignore the neglect and abuse that occurs within ILLC and other institutions, as they try to find ways of masking the problems to increase their profit.
In one case, after a young girl had died at an institution, Michelle describes Tim’s insensitive response: “Tim is furious. Whitney-Palm will probably have to pay another fine because the girl’s parents told the state they wanted an investigation” (166). Instead of showing the necessary sympathy for the girl’s death, Tim immediately worries about his company’s bottom line. It happens often in the narrative, and Nussbaum doesn’t shy away from casting these characters in an accusatory light. The problem is not only monetary, but political as well, as the institution donates to political campaigns from both parties.
In juxtaposition with the lives of the disabled teens, who often lack the minimum accommodations and equipment to have basic comforts, the politicians and CEOs of these companies are living lavishly, receiving pay bonuses, and going on extravagant vacations. These clear hints of potential corruption and shady business underscore how incapable and ill-suited private businesses like Whitney-Palm are for handling the lives of Americans in need.
Overcoming Intersectional Trauma through Community
Intersectionality is a social theory developed by American lawyer and civil rights advocate Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw. The sociological concept outlines how oppression and trauma looks different for every individual based on their “intersecting” identities. For example, a woman may be more likely to deal with systemic oppression than a male, but a young disabled Latina woman may be far more likely than a wealthy middle aged white woman to experience different forms of discrimination and oppression. Issues of age, race, socioeconomic status, gender, and body are all factors in determining how much oppression or trauma an individual may experience in their lives.
In the case of Good Kings Bad Kings, there is a spectrum of characters who experience trauma based on their intersectional identity. Characters like Mia and Yessenia, for instance, are perhaps most vulnerable due to their set of social challenges. Jimmie and Joanne also have similar struggles, yet each present with largely disparate experiences as well—one is an African American woman, while the other is a disabled white woman. In both situations, a certain set of barriers appear that they must each learn to overcome independently and with the help of community. Ricky is also a character with intersectional trauma as a Puerto Rican man from a poor family. Though he may not have as many social obstacles to hurdle as someone like Mia, he still has to deal with a past defined by a violent community and abusive family.
Mia’s experience of sexual abuse is the clearest example of how one’s intersectional identity can more likely lead to trauma. Because she is blind, unable to physically move, speaks broken English, and is a teenager, she is in a particularly vulnerable position in the social hierarchy. This makes her an easy target for Jerry—a white middle-aged male employee at ILLC—to exert his power over her. Both physically and socially more capable than Mia, Jerry is able to exert his will over her and exploit her. Mia unfortunately experiences depression as a result, and her life begins to unravel as she is unable to express her abuse to others out of fear of Jerry’s retaliation. If Mia had instead been an able-bodied, white, middle aged, wealthy woman with a high-ranking position, she more likely would not have been in the same position for someone like Jerry to abuse her as he did. Yet, with the help of her community made up of other similarly intersectional identities—Yessenia, Teddy, Joanne, Jimmie, Ricky, etc.—many of whom have also been victims of abusive power, she is able to recover, showing the importance and ability of being able to triumph over the trauma one may experience due to their intersectional vulnerabilities.
Unlock all 61 pages of this Study GuidePlus, gain access to 8,800+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features: