OCDaniel

The drama of Chapters 13-16 revolves around two key events: the football game in which Daniel plays, and Daniel and Sara’s interactions with John—first at Sara’s house, then at John’s, where they plant the phone. It is in the context of both events that the role of fathers and father figures is explored. Specifically, King explores what it means for a father to be either “present” or “absent,” and the effects this has on their children. At one extreme, there are fathers in OCDaniel who are absent. As Daniel says, reflecting on this, “Maybe I didn’t see mine too much, but he was there. Sara’s and Max’s were gone, and they had both taken a bit of their children with them” (149-150).

Sara’s father is gone in a literal sense. She says they were extremely close, and his absence is a source of deep pain for her, as well as being at the root of her selective mutism. Meanwhile, Max’s dad is alive, but he has little or no interest in his son, except to watch him “proudly” (159) as a star in the football game. He is not even willing to stay around for the celebrations afterwards. Indeed, this draws attention to another issue with fathers in OCDaniel. Their interest in their children is often conditional upon the apparent “pride” they feel via their child’s success in football. That parental approval has to be “won” via a competitive, and often violent, game reflects something problematic. This is especially the case in the context in a novel about anxiety and mental health issues. For, however well meaning, it inevitably links parental love to public performances at which it is possible to fail or lose. This can cause unhealthy stress and anxiety for the children involved.

Further, this connects to a deeper problem with father-son relations in the text. When Daniel watches a game of football with his father, it provides some rare time spent together. As Daniel says, “even though I really didn’t like watching football, I was happy to be there with him” (165). Football provides the pretext for at least some form of communication between the pair. It even allows his father to express concern over seeing Daniel’s lights turn on and off. However, it is also clear how little his father understands him. He is unaware of all the main dramas of Daniel’s life: Raya, Sara, his writing. Likewise, despite seeing some worrying signs, he is oblivious to the anxiety and psychological suffering Daniel experiences because of his condition. In fact, his blindness on this point is emphasized by the fact that Daniel can perform an obsessive routine with the chips on the table right under his father’s nose, without him noticing. Daniel, conversely, does not feel comfortable opening up to his father about any of this.

There is at least one potential positive father figure in OCDaniel. While Sara and Daniel suspect John of murdering Sara’s father and view him in negative terms, John emerges as someone with genuine depth. Unlike the other fathers in the text, he is willing to be emotionally honest. He acknowledges the problems caused by absent fathers, and his own past. As he says, “Dads leave sometimes […] Mine did too” (179). He cares about Sara and has some awareness of her pain. It is further telling that such honesty allows Sarah to talk to him for the first time. Though what happened between John and Sara’s father remains shrouded in mystery at this point, John represents the possibility of what a more meaningful father figure might look like. It also suggests a positive possibility for Sara’s recovery from her father’s loss, and a way she can start to communicate again.