58 pages • 1 hour read
Jenny HanAlways and Forever, Lara Jean
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2017A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Romantic Love at Any Age
Readers familiar with the other titles in this series will recognize that romantic love is a theme running throughout the three books. In fact, despite hiccups in their relationship, Lara Jean and Peter are a proper couple throughout the whole novel. They may be teenaged, but their relationship is solid and works on a basis of mutual respect and communication. Of course, the events of this novel work to try to break down the sophistication of their relationship.
There are a few unique elements to Lara Jean and Peter’s love relationship that set them apart from their peers. The origin of their relationship was not romantic, but it was based first in a kind of friendship and then on a pact. Their feelings developed over time, rather than beginning in lust or love at first sight. After a full year in an “exclusive” relationship, the pair has not had sex. Peter and his ex-girlfriend Gen were sexually active during their relationship, but Lara Jean is a virgin. They are waiting until she feels ready. The purpose here is to show a couple where the boyfriend is personable and well-liked by his school mates, but is also thoughtful and kind toward his girlfriend and does not feel pressure from his peers to convince Lara Jean to sleep with him. If anything, Lara Jean feels pressure from her peer group to keep that aspect of her relationship with Peter a secret; she’s afraid people would judge her, and him, by extension, if they all found out the truth. Lara Jean has the conviction of character and self-determination to set her own boundaries and know her own business when it comes to her sexuality. She’s not going to freely change them to suit anyone else’s needs but her own.
Representing mature love, Lara Jean’s father, Daniel, has formed a romantic relationship with his neighbor, Trina. Much like Peter and Lara Jean, the pair have known one another for years before forming a couple; in their case, their acquaintanceship began when Daniel was still married and Eva Song, the girls’ mother, was alive. At that point, they all just viewed her as a neighbor. In this novel, the third in the trilogy, Daniel and Trina have already established their romantic relationship, and Daniel is planning to propose.
The daughters represent a variety of reactions a child may have to their parent getting remarried: Kitty, the youngest, is overjoyed. She sees Trina as a mother figure and relies on her the most. Their relationship is strong and deep, and separate from her relationship with her father. Lara Jean is happy for them but bases her reaction more on her father’s happiness than on what Trina wants. Her relationship with Trina develops as the narrative progresses.
Finally, Margot, the oldest, has the most tenuous relationship with Trina, and she reacts the least favorably to the announcement of their father’s wish to propose. She complains about Trina’s habits, and the two butt heads several times in person. Margot questions why her father and Trina would actually need to get married or have a wedding at this stage in their lives. The author’s representation of middle-aged adults in love is well planned. While not interfering with Lara Jean’s own drama, it is consistently in the background of the novel, and threads its way into the forefront for the proposal, the bachelor and bachelorette parties, and the wedding that caps the novel. Whatever dramas Lara Jean and Peter are having, the reader is grounded by the firm relationship between Trina and Daniel.
Minority Representation in 21st-Century Suburban America
The protagonist and narrator of this series, Lara Jean, is mixed race Korean American. Her father is white, and her mother was Korean. The siblings refer to themselves as the “Song girls” rather than by their father’s surname, Covey. They try to keep their Korean heritage alive by eating Korean food, particularly in local Korean restaurants; however, their future stepmother Trina has a limited palate and does not enjoy spicy food, and this presents some limitations on where and how often the girls eat Korean food, suggesting this emphasis on heritage may change at least within the Covey household. With their father’s encouragement, the girls also participate in traditional events with the local Korean community from time to time. For Lara Jean’s graduation present, her family surprises her with a month-long trip to Korea to be shared with her sisters, for them to learn more about their heritage, spending time there with their relatives still living in Korea and their grandmother. This gift signals their fathers’ determination to keep his daughters’ connection to the Korean culture alive.
However, Lara Jean’s identity among her friends and at school does not have to do with her race. It appears that most of her friends are upper-middle-class CIS white teenagers, including her boyfriend, Peter. At school, she has assimilated into this identity as well. She bakes Western-inspired cookies and meals for her friends, and their hangout spot is an American diner. Her favorite films, like Sixteen Candles, are filled with white teenagers. The only member of her group who is referred to as being gay—indeed, the only person at her school given a queer identity—is her friend Lucas, who is also the only African American character. Still, intersectional representation of minorities is low in this trilogy. Lara Jean is not the stereotypical, traditional Asian daughter, nor are her sisters. They are all allowed to be themselves, voice their own perspectives, and choose to follow their passions both in and out of the classroom.
Coming-of-Age and Adjusting to Changes
This novel is the third in a series of books narrated from the perspective of a young Asian-American woman getting her high school education in the 2010s. She grows as a character across the three novels, and in this part of the tale, she begins to develop into an adult with choices, responsibilities, and pressures she would not have needed to cope with in the first or second of the three novels. Written by an adult, this book and the other two are made for a Young Adult (YA) audience, with the intention being that teenagers reading these books will find them relatable but also learn some things about growing up.
Always and Forever, Lara Jean addresses several formative milestones in the average American high school senior’s life, including prom, graduation, Beach Week, and a road trip. It also showcases realistic moments for teens such as a parent’s remarriage, a breakup with one’s high school sweetheart, fading friendships, and the process of getting into university. By developing a wealthy suburban world for Lara Jean to occupy, the author has chosen a specific demographic to whom these novels speak. In doing so, she has cleared certain significant issues off the table; for example, it would be unfathomable in this world for Lara Jean to experience or witness poverty. By eliminating certain possibilities, the author brings others into central focus, including the shared experience of grief and loss that link Peter and Lara Jean. Narrowing down the possibilities of experience makes this story more singular for the characters’ personal development, and more relatable to a specific readership. While there may be certain universal truths to the coming-of-age novel, this particular take on the theme has restricted its expanse, tethering it to a digestible reality (or aspirational lifestyle) for the average modern American teen.
Lara Jean’s growth, in particular, deals with her newfound ability to adapt. At first, she can’t fathom that she won’t be going to her boyfriend’s college, and she quickly develops a plan so that she can wind up there after her first year. She shortsightedly picks a nearby college that doesn’t appeal to her, and it isn’t until she gets into UNC that she recognizes college might be an opportunity for personal growth and experiences rather than just an avenue for staying close to Peter. Soon afterward, she can even let go of her gripping need to be with Peter for the sake of his athletic career—a move that suggests she is growing beyond her need for this romantic partnership, even though her resolve doesn’t last. With each of these conflicts that upend Lara Jeans social map of how things should be, she eventually finds that she can adapt and create new goals.
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