Bruiser

Several characters struggle to find balance in the emotions they feel, largely because of Brewster’s ability to take away any suffering and negative emotions from them. Despite the supernatural aspect of this ability, it sheds light on the very real dangers of allowing single emotions—especially negative ones—to overwhelm one’s life.

At the start of the text, Tennyson tends to allow his anger and overprotectiveness toward his sister Brontë to greatly impact his life. He plays lacrosse in an effort to channel his anger, and he frequently gets in fights in school. After he crashes Brontë’s first date with Brewster, she challenges him on his arrogance and his anger, calling him a “bully.” This accusation prompts an epiphany in Tennyson as he begins to realize the degree to which his negative emotions have controlled his life and personality.

Conversely, as he comes under the influence of Brewster, his negative emotions are taken away, replaced by contentment and calm. While this initially seems like a positive development, it prevents Tennyson from dealing with his negative emotions and thus prevents him from maturing or achieving a deeper understanding of himself. He initially fails to recognize his situation. When he pauses in the doorway of his house, hesitant to leave the sphere of Brewster’s magical influence, this literal threshold serves as a metaphor for the threshold of personal responsibility he is unable or unwilling to cross.

Tennyson eventually recognizes the danger of not allowing himself to feel any emotion at all. As Brewster dies by the edge of the pool, Tennyson realizes that he needs to take back the pain and emotion he has given to Brewster: “Against my own self-preservation instinct, I fight to feel those things I refused to feel before” (317). His use of the term “self-preservation” illustrates his profound fear of negative emotions: Since he hasn’t learned to cope with these feelings, he lacks the confidence that he can survive them. Tennyson realizes that it is also healthy to allow one to feel true emotion and grapple with both the negative and positive. Although he does not fully succeed by the pool, the final phone call at the conclusion of the text confirms his transformation. He thinks how, after the news of their parents’ divorce, “this is the moment that we have finally, truly taken back our own pain […] because everyone must feel their own pain—and as awful as that is, it’s also wonderful” (327). This paradoxical insight reveals Tennyson’s success at finally understanding why balance is necessary for his emotions.

Similarly, Cody’s journey throughout the text also reflects the importance of facing negative emotions. Initially, Cody is unafraid of the dangers of his life—jumping from a tree, being beaten by Uncle Hoyt, and even climbing a dangerous electrical tower. Because Brewster unquestioningly takes away all of his pain and misery, Cody is able to live his life without fear of consequences, and as a result he does not learn to be responsible for himself or to prioritize his brother’s well-being. However, as he nearly falls from the electrical tower and fights to hold on to his fear, he realizes just how important fear—a typically negative emotion—can be. Without the fear of falling, he climbed without hesitation and put in little effort into holding on; however, by allowing the fear to envelope him, he recognizes the true danger that both his life and Brewster’s are in. Similarly, after he breaks his arm by jumping from the window of the social service worker’s office, Tennyson thinks how “Cody’s a kid who will go through life learning things the hard way” (321). Without Brewster to take away his injury, Cody struggles and complains about his cast. However, he also learns the consequences of his actions, and continues on his journey to find balance between emotions like bravery and fear, and consideration and impulse, ultimately giving him better judgment and helping him in his life.

Contrary to Tennyson and Cody, who battle with their lack of negative emotion, Brewster struggles throughout the text with an overwhelming amount of pain and despair. His condition slowly deteriorates throughout the text, as Brontë witnesses him struggle in silence with his fresh bruising and scaring as well as his emotional pain. By refusing accept his gift—instead leaving the house and going to the pool to grapple with her emotions—she breaks her family out of the cycle of allowing Brewster to take their negative emotions for them. Ultimately, it is Brewster’s sacrifice of himself for Brontë which sparks change in Tennyson and provides hope for a better future for Brewster as well.

Brewster’s sacrifice allows Tennyson to truly open his eyes to the importance of feeling his emotions, while also allowing Cody to continue to grow and learn from his actions. As the novel ends, it is unclear whether Brewster will recover from his coma, but the note is hopeful as Tennyson’s phone begins to ring. What is important is that, as Tennyson pleads for Brewster’s recovery, he speaks to Brew: “So open your eyes, Brew. Open your eyes, and talk to us. We’ll keep our pain, but I promise we’ll share our joy. Talk to us, Brew … because we’re finally ready to take your call” (328). These final lines affirm Tennyson’s change throughout the novel. He has recognized that, by allowing Brew to contain all of their negative emotions, they created an imbalance—and everyone suffered as a result. Now, he is willing to focus on sharing their joy, allowing for everyone to find the healthy balance they need.

What seems like a positive for those around him, Brewster’s ability to take away the emotional and physical pain of others, becomes more complicated throughout the text. As Cody fails to learn the consequences of his actions and Tennyson becomes complacent in his willingness to let Brewster take his feelings from him, it becomes clear that not facing difficult emotions is detrimental to both characters. For Brewster himself, despite his willingness to take on these emotions out of love for his friends and family, his ability overwhelms him both in his bruises and in his emotional state. Ultimately, however, the hint of his survival in the final pages of the text provides hope for these characters. Cody and Tennyson have learned the benefit of balancing their emotions and are willing to do so, with the hope that Brewster, too, can recover and have more joy in his life from them.