Summaries The Cherry Robbers Sarai Walker

Chapter 10 'Son of a Gun': Summary, Key Events, and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

In the summer of 1957, Iris begins a Summer Art Intensive at a local college, partly to escape her sister Zelie's persistent gloom. Zelie refuses to leave the house, sulking through the first week. On Friday, the class travels to New York to visit the Sandler Museum, where they view an exhibit of abstract expressionist painters. A room dedicated to female artists surprises Iris, who had only known of Mary Cassatt. She is particularly drawn to Helen Frankenthaler's Mountains and Sea and later to Ruth Davidson Abrams's Memory of My Mother, which inspires her to think about how she might paint her own memories of Belinda. Nello, the guest lecturer, assigns the class to paint a dominant emotion using a single color. Iris chooses Zelie as her subject and settles on fear, though she struggles to find the right color.

The next morning, Iris visits Belinda alone at the sanitarium, since Zelie refuses to go. Belinda is lucid and calm, and they sit on a promontory overlooking the sea. Belinda asks about Iris's art class and then tells Iris that she must take care of Zelie, warning that Zelie might do something reckless. She also asks for a break from visits, speaking with an urgency that suggests she knows they won't meet again. Iris returns home to find Zelie has been out sailing with Florence and Edwin, a story that seems suspicious.

Over the following weeks, Zelie claims to spend her days helping Florence with wedding planning, but Iris notices inconsistencies. One Saturday, while reading the newspaper, Iris discovers that Veronica Cream has married Clyde Bassett. The announcement upsets her deeply, and she retrieves Daphne's painting The White Iris from her wardrobe, leading to a private moment of self-exploration and desire. Later, while driving, she spots an Aston Martin matching Sam Colt's car, reinforcing her suspicion that Zelie is secretly seeing him.

Near the end of the art intensive, Nello reviews Iris's portfolio. He singles out her red canvas—her attempt to paint fear—and tells her it conveys rage instead. He encourages her to pursue art school, saying she has real talent and should not let her father's practicality hold her back. On the final day of class, Zelie unexpectedly asks to accompany Iris to New York. While Iris is in the kitchen, a travel agent calls and reveals that Zelie has booked a flight to Rome with Sam Colt for Monday. Iris is stunned and realizes she has only a few days to intervene.

Key Events

  • Iris starts the Summer Art Intensive; Zelie refuses to leave the house.

  • The class visits an exhibit of female abstract expressionists; Nello assigns a single-color emotion painting.

  • Iris visits Belinda alone; Belinda warns her to take care of Zelie and asks for a break from visits.

  • Zelie begins spending time with Florence and Edwin, claiming to be wedding-planning.

  • Iris reads about Veronica Cream's marriage to Clyde Bassett and is deeply disturbed.

  • Iris spots an Aston Martin matching Sam Colt's car.

  • Nello reviews Iris's portfolio, says the red canvas shows rage, and urges her to consider art school.

  • A travel agent reveals Zelie has booked a flight to Rome with Sam Colt for Monday.

Character Development

Iris grows as an artist and as a protector. Her exposure to abstract expressionism opens her to new ways of expressing emotion, and Nello's feedback pushes her to confront the rage beneath her fear. She also becomes more observant and suspicious of Zelie's lies, though she struggles with how to intervene without alienating her sister.

Zelie transforms from a sulking, housebound figure into a deceptively cheerful one. Her happiness is revealed to be a mask for a reckless plan to run away with Sam Colt. She lies to Iris about her whereabouts and seems to believe she has found a future beyond the family's tragic history.

Belinda appears lucid and maternal, offering a final warning to Iris. Her request for a break from visits and her urgent tone suggest she senses her own mortality or the impending disaster.

Nello serves as a mentor, recognizing Iris's talent and challenging her to be less timid. His observation that the red canvas conveys rage rather than fear becomes a key insight into Iris's inner state.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

  • Abstract Expressionism as Emotional Language: The exhibit and Nello's assignment push Iris to translate feelings into color and form, highlighting the difficulty of expressing the inexpressible.

  • Fear vs. Rage: Iris intends to paint fear but produces a canvas that reads as rage, suggesting that her fear is intertwined with suppressed anger—perhaps at her family's fate or at Zelie's recklessness.

  • Secrecy and Deception: Zelie's elaborate lies about Florence and sailing mirror the family's history of hidden desires and forbidden relationships.

  • Marriage as Conformity and Betrayal: Veronica's marriage to a man feels like a betrayal to Iris, who saw her as a goddess and a symbol of forbidden love. It also underscores the pressure on women to conform.

  • Sisterly Duty and Burden: Iris feels responsible for Zelie's safety, a burden passed from Belinda. The chapter emphasizes the weight of this obligation.

  • Escape and Flight: Zelie's planned trip to Rome represents a desperate attempt to escape her life, while Iris's art offers a different kind of escape.

  • The Sea as Freedom: The sea imagery—Belinda's promontory, the sailing trips—suggests both freedom and danger.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is pivotal because it reveals Zelie's secret plan to elope with Sam Colt, setting up the central conflict of the novel's second half. It also marks a turning point in Iris's artistic development, as she begins to understand the power of abstract expressionism and receives validation from Nello. The chapter deepens the themes of premonition and sisterly duty, as Belinda's warning and Iris's growing suspicion converge. Finally, Veronica's marriage serves as a stark reminder of the societal pressures that shape the characters' choices.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Iris choose fear as the dominant emotion for her painting, and what does Nello's interpretation reveal about her?

Iris chooses fear because she is increasingly worried about Zelie's secretive behavior. Nello sees rage instead, suggesting that Iris's fear is underpinned by anger—perhaps at Zelie's recklessness, at the family's tragic pattern, or at her own powerlessness. This discrepancy highlights the complexity of Iris's emotional state.

2. How does Belinda's conversation with Iris on the promontory foreshadow the chapter's ending?

Belinda tells Iris to take care of Zelie and warns that Zelie might do something reckless. She also asks for a break from visits, speaking as if she knows they won't meet again. This foreshadows Zelie's planned flight to Rome and suggests that Belinda has a premonition of danger.

3. What does Veronica's marriage to Clyde Bassett represent to Iris, and why does it upset her so deeply?

Veronica's marriage feels like a betrayal to Iris because Iris had seen Veronica as a symbol of forbidden love and a goddess, someone who defied convention. The marriage represents conformity and the erasure of Veronica's true identity, which Iris finds monstrous. It also forces Iris to confront her own desires and the impossibility of a 'normal' life for herself.

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