Freedom

Throughout the novel, the author depicts each of her primary characters in a range of entrapping circumstances in order to explore the individual’s innate desire for freedom. What is unique about the majority of these protagonists is their passive natures. Unlike conventional heroes, David from Book 1, David from Book 2, Wika from Book 2, and Charlie from Book 3, cling to familiarity. Therefore, their desire for freedom is not perpetually at the forefront of their minds.

Rather, in each book, the characters are moved by another individual or conflict to seek escape and liberty. In Book 1, David is attached to his life at Washington Square until Grandfather endows him with the property. As soon as he learns he will inherit the house, his relationship with it changes. In Book 1, Part 2, the narrator says “he had never considered the house as anything but a sanctuary . . . And now it would...