The second time, A mentions 'the plot of Romeo and Juliet' when listing the 'every day memories' A holds on to throughout life (53).

The first time, A calls Leslie Wong's brother 'Romeo' when commenting on his story about fighting over a girl (44). Levithan alludes to William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet two times early on in the novel.

Levithan returns to this unique use of the word 'enormity' throughout the novel, always in reference to the universality of feelings of empathy, love, and connection. At other points, Levithan uses 'enormity' to refer to a more general feeling of human interconnectedness: 'Everybody wants to belong to something bigger than themselves, and everybody wants company in doing that.they want to touch the enormity' (77). Once you experience enormity, it lingers everywhere you look, and wants to be in every word you say' (32). I try to tamp them down, but they're not that easy to contain. At times, the enormity refers to A's feelings for Rhiannon: 'Flashes of Rhiannon rise up in my mind's eye. Throughout the novel, Levithan uses the term 'enormity' to refer to a deep, overwhelming feeling of human connection. Levithan uses the theme of the devil and demons to enforce this point, using the public's misguided fear of A to illustrate the ways closed-mindedness and zealousness can lead us to the wrong conclusions. Instead, A is an empathetic and moral being whose difference from regular humans is a matter of chance, not nefariousness. A, of course, is not a demon or associated with the devil. This judgment is based entirely on fear of the unknown, rather than any actual assessment of A's character. Throughout Every Day, Nathan and his supporters do exactly this, attributing A's existence to the devil and categorizing A as evil. After seeing homophobic protesters at a Pride parade, A reflects on 'how people use the devil as an alias for the things they fear,' concluding that 'the devil doesn't make anyone do anything,' but people 'just do things and blame the devil after' (142). Nathan and Reverend Poole seek A out for different reasons-Nathan simply wants answers, and the reverend wants to control A-but both use the fervor of evangelical religious communities to spread Nathan's story and compel A to give in. The antagonists in Every Day, Nathan Daldry and Reverend Poole, use the religious fear of demon possession to propel their cause and apply pressure on A.

Buy Study Guide The Devil/Demons (Symbol)

Everyday book david levithan