Bart isn't just dealing with his feelings about his father's death. He's also dealing with the realization that anyone in his life—including his mom and even Bart himself—could die at any given time. Bart feels really anxious about his mother's close brush with death on September 11. Also not helping? The death threats he receives from Tyro.
Sometimes in books death seems to bring people together; past arguments are forgotten and old rifts are almost magically healed. In Bullyville, however, death seems to drive people apart. Bart and his mom feel lonely and isolated after his father dies—and at the end of the book, Nola's death drives Tyro to violence.
Questions About Mortality
- In Bullyville, Bart deals with his father's death, but he also deals with the possibility of death—his mother's (because she almost died in the World Trade Center) and his own (because he's receiving death threats from Tyro). Which do you think Bart struggles with most?
- How does Bart's mother deal with his father's death? How does her reaction compare to Bart's? What does this tell you about Bart and his mom as characters?
- As a reader, which death moves you more, Bart's dad's or Nola's? Why? Explain your answer.
Chew on This
In Bullyville, there's a large gap between what you should feel when someone dies and what you actually feel when someone dies.
In Bullyville, dealing with death doesn't help you become a better person. If anything, it makes you a worse person.