Academics

While academics is a focal point of the novel, the author wants readers to see that it is not the only path they can take for success. This is why Daniel’s desperation to attend Cambridge is shown as his dream, while Frances’s hard work is shown as a byproduct of her anxiety and belief that education is all she can do with her life.

Between these two characters, Daniel is the one who’s goal of getting into Cambridge is one he made for himself. He shows the same signs of anxiety and stress that Frances does, but neither are relieved until he is officially accepted. When he tells her how badly he wants to get into Cambridge, Frances thinks, “He cared about his subject, I knew that much” (320). The author also shows that his parents are not putting any pressure on him. In...