Crushes

Kate in Waiting demonstrates that an individual’s will and rational and moral thinking are powerless in the face of a crush. Also, the author demonstrates that the crush itself provides an addictive euphoria, even when a person’s feelings are unrequited.

Kate’s crush affects her every waking moment, and Kate lacks rational and moral thinking when she crushes on Matt. The author describes the crush in physical terms as a thirst that cannot be slaked and “doesn’t stop” (2). The author also describes how all-consuming a crush is when she states that the crush on Matt made Kate feel that “he [is] the sun in our solar system” (2). Furthermore, the physiological response to a crush is obvious when the author describes how, when saying good-bye to Matt at camp, Kate’s voice shakes and lips tremble. Later on in the book, Kate states how...