Witchcraft for Wayward Girls: Chapter 32 Summary & 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

After giving birth, Fern is returned to Wellwood House by taxi. She feels hollow and wants only to be alone. Nurse Kent and Diane treat her with unusual kindness, but Fern resents it. In the Barn, she shares a brief, meaningful moment with Clem, who is leaving the next day. Clem gives her a cigarette and they listen to music. Fern receives meals that feel like undeserved rewards, and a shot to dry up her milk.

Holly and Zinnia visit and present their plan for Holly to have her baby at Hagar’s house and then run away to Rose’s empty home in Augusta. Fern dismisses the plan as impractical, arguing that Holly should have the baby in the hospital and then forget about it. Zinnia accuses Fern of betraying them, and Holly reveals she already told Diane about Reverend Jerry, but nothing was done.

After they leave, Fern clings to the protective pouch Hagar made her, feeling it distorts her sense of reality. She counts the days until her father picks her up and imagines returning to her old life. Later, she is forced to deliver iced tea to Miss Wellwood’s guest. She recognizes the man as Reverend Jerry, who stands with his hand on Holly’s belly. Fern leaves, refusing to get involved, and tells Zinnia it is none of their business.

Key Events

Fern returns to Wellwood House after childbirth, feeling empty and wanting only to be invisible.
She shares a cigarette with Clem, who leaves the next day; Clem admits she was not allowed to feed her baby.
Fern receives a special meal and a shot to dry up her milk, which she accepts without resistance.
Holly and Zinnia visit and outline an elaborate escape plan that involves giving birth at Hagar’s and then hiding at Rose’s home.
Fern argues the plan is unrealistic and tells Holly to simply have the baby and forget it.
Zinnia becomes angry; Holly reveals she already informed Diane about Reverend Jerry, but Diane did nothing.
After they leave, Fern feels the protective pouch distorts her perception, confirming its power.
Fern mentally prepares for her father’s arrival in six days and imagines returning to high school.
She sees Jasmine and Ginger in the Barn; Jasmine describes her difficult delivery.
Fern is sent to deliver iced tea to Miss Wellwood’s guest and recognizes the man as Reverend Jerry, who is touching Holly’s stomach.
Fern walks away and lies to Zinnia, saying the visitor is no one important.

Character Development

Fern: Post-childbirth, Fern is physically and emotionally drained. She attempts to detach from the other girls’ problems, advocating for a pragmatic acceptance of the institution’s rules. Her refusal to help Holly and Zinnia marks a low point in her loyalty, yet her encounter with Reverend Jerry reignites her unease.
Zinnia: She is determined and creative, but her escape plan reveals her naivete about the realities of childbirth. Her anger at Fern shows how deeply she cares for Holly’s safety.
Holly: Initially crushed by Fern’s rejection, she later appears blank and doll-like when Reverend Jerry is present, suggesting she has been coerced or drugged into compliance.
Clem: Provides a moment of solidarity with Fern before leaving the Home. Her resigned tone about her future hints at the lasting trauma the girls carry.
Reverend Jerry: Appears directly for the first time, pretending to be a nervous adoptive father. His physical closeness to Holly confirms the predatory threat Fern and Zinnia suspected.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

The Protective Pouch: Fern’s pouch, a witchcraft charm, becomes a symbol of her desire to shield herself from further emotional pain. She feels it pushes reality away, reflecting her denial.
Denial and the Fantasy of Return: Fern repeatedly tells herself she will go home and forget everything, illustrating the impossibility of erasing her experiences.
The Baby as Commodity: Reverend Jerry’s behavior toward Holly treats her pregnant body as an object to be inspected for purchase, reinforcing the dehumanization of the girls.
Institutional Failure: Holly’s revelation that Diane already knows about Reverend Jerry and did nothing exposes the Home’s complicity in the abuse of its charges.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is a turning point for Fern: having given birth, she must decide whether to reengage with her friends’ crisis or retreat into self-preservation. It also raises the stakes by introducing Reverend Jerry in person, making the threat concrete. The chapter deepens the novel’s critique of the systems that fail young mothers and shows Fern’s emotional state as one of profound disconnection from her former self.

Study Questions and Answers

Why does Fern repeatedly tell herself she just wants to go home?
Fern uses the fantasy of returning to her pre-pregnancy life as a coping mechanism to avoid confronting the trauma of giving birth and giving up her daughter. She believes that leaving Wellwood will allow her to pretend nothing happened.
Why does Zinnia’s escape plan seem unrealistic to Fern?
Fern has experienced the physical ordeal of childbirth firsthand and knows Holly will not be fit to travel immediately. She also points out that Rose never sent the promised money, making the financial foundation of the plan shaky.
What is the significance of Holly’s claim that she already told Diane?
It reveals that the social worker, meant to protect the girls, has done nothing in response. This shows that the institutional safety net is broken, leaving Holly and the others without reliable adult help and vulnerable to exploitation.