39 pages • 1 hour read
Casey McQuistonRed, White, and Royal Blue
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2019A 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
Personal Identity
Alex first becomes impressed with Henry when he overhears the latter telling a little girl that the most important thing in life is to stay true to one’s self. Of course, much of Henry’s subsequent behavior wildly contradicts that statement. Henry is the most extreme example in the book of a character who can’t openly be himself. A conflict exists between Henry’s perception who he is and the expectations of everyone around him. Because he comes from the tradition-bound royal family of England, he is expected to assume a particular role that is totally at odds with his wishes.
Alex faces a similar problem, but his conditioning was quite different than Henry’s. He wasn’t expected, from his earliest years, to be a paragon. His half-Mexican heritage automatically makes him a bit of an outsider. His theatrical temperament also causes his family to view him as an oddball. For these reasons, it isn’t as much of a stretch for Alex to own his bisexuality. Nor is it as hard for Alex to believe that he can find a way to express who he is in the world.
Alex and Henry aren’t the only characters whose sexual identities are a source of concern. Rafael Luna is gay and deliberately chooses a life in politics, where his personal life must come under constant scrutiny by the public. He doesn’t make any attempt to conceal who he is but accepts that he will be rejected to some voters.
All three characters are challenged with meeting the expectations of the public at large. On more than one occasion, Henry wonders what it would be like to live an ordinary life. Ultimately, the book suggests that it doesn’t matter whether it’s hard or easy to do; the only life worth living is the one lived authentically.
Public Personas Versus Private Desires
Alex and Henry’s relationship isn’t merely complicated by the internal struggle of coming to terms with their sexual orientation. They both come from public families that are under constant pressure to provide a role model for proper behavior. Each one has a duty to his country that threatens to preempt his duty to himself.
Even though Alex is regarded fondly as a maverick by his family and the American public, he is faced with certain expectations. He wants to follow his mother into a career in politics. Because he understands the pressure his family receives from the conservatives in government, Alex knows his private behavior may have a direct bearing on whether or not his mother receives another term in office.
The public stakes are no less high for Henry. He a potential heir to the throne and is expected to produce offspring to continue the bloodline. Even though his family can’t be thrown out of office as Alex’s can, Henry carries the burden of centuries of dynastic tradition. He must project a public persona that reinforces the dignity of the crown. Alex and Henry’s private attraction toward one another runs directly contrary to the public roles they have been assigned to play.
A darker version of the public persona at odds with private desires is exemplified by Richards and Rafael. Senator Richards is the public standard-bearer for traditional American family values. Privately, he is a predator who takes sexual advantage of his young male interns, including Rafael.
Mass media is the mechanism by which the world of public and private collide. Prior to the information age, it might have been possible to keep private affairs private. The all-pervasiveness of social media disseminates personal correspondence at the touch of a button. It also functions as a double-edged sword. While Edwards meant to expose Alex and Henry by hacking their emails, he is undone by the same method when Rafael publishes the senator’s scheme to discredit the FSOTUS.
Independence Over Conformity
The polarizing differences between American and British culture illustrates the book’s third major theme. The ruling family of England relies on tradition to guide its behavior. The queen’s principal role is to prohibit change from infecting both her family and the nation at large. By comparison, America is a relatively young country. Its ideals of freedom and equality at least pay lip service to the notion that people ought to be allowed to live in the way that suits them best. Ellen’s term as president ushers in a greater tolerance for diversity of gender, race, and sexuality.
The values of each nation are expressed by the two young men attempting to conduct a private affair. Alex is an optimistic American who believes anything is possible—even a happy ending for his romance. Henry is depressed by a sense of his own failure to live up to his family’s expectations. He won’t even allow himself to consider the possibility of happiness. As he tells Alex, “My birthright is a country, not happiness” (272).
The queen fights to deny change to the very end of the story. She believes she knows what people expect of their government. The people prove her wrong by staging demonstrations that support diversity. Although America has already taken its first shaky steps in that direction, the British monarchy has yet to acknowledge that the world is rearranging itself according to a new pattern.
The leap from conformity to independence seems much greater for the British characters in the story. Henry’s struggle is mirrored, to a lesser degree, by the other members of his family as they attempt to adapt to changing times. On the American side, conformity still carries some weight, as evidenced by Richards ability to win a number of states in the election despite the scandal attached to his name. Ellen’s victory is a close call, but it offers reason for hope.
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