A passage from “A Wrinkle in Time,” a masterpiece of children’s literature, holds a subtle but important lesson about human nature and the transformative power of love.
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I love to read, and even as an adult, I love to read children’s literature.
Perhaps because I’ve reread them more often, and also because they come from my childhood, I often find myself reflecting on passages from children’s novels.
One novel that I’ve read and re-read many times, perhaps dozens of times, is Madeleine L’Engle’s masterpiece, the Newbery-award-winning A Wrinkle in Time. The other day, I found myself thinking about a moment that occurs in the early chapters of the book.
Because of an introduction made by her little brother Charles Wallace, the main character Meg has a conversation with a boy from her high school, Calvin. Although they’ve never talked before, it’s instantly clear that they have a deep connection. The ease of this friendship is surprising to Meg, because she’s a bit of an outsider, and Calvin is older than she is, and very popular. He’s also one of eleven children in his family.
After an encounter with the mysterious Mrs. Who, Charles Wallace and Meg invite Calvin to come to dinner at their house with their family.
Calvin accepts, and when he arrives, he asks to use the phone so he can tell his mother where he is. Here’s how the story continues:
“I don’t know why I call her when I don’t come home,” Calvin said, his voice bitter. “She wouldn’t notice.” He sighed and dialed. “Ma?” he said. “Oh, Hinky. Tell Ma I won’t be home till late. Now don’t forget. I don’t wanted to be locked out again.”
Calvin then explains to Meg, “But I love her. That’s the funny part of it. I love them all, and they don’t give a hoot about me. Maybe that’s why I call when I’m not going to be home. Because I care. Nobody else does. You don’t know how lucky you are to be loved.”
A Wrinkle in Time is a book for children, but it is full of big ideas, and one of its big ideas is the transformative nature of love—the power of being loved, and also the power of loving.
Even as a child, I recognized that this remark by Calvin held a subtle but important lesson about human nature. Calvin called his mother out of love; even if she didn’t care about him, he could care about her. I remember that as a child, whenever I came across this passage, I would pause to puzzle over it.
As an adult, I’m reminded of W. H. Auden’s poem “The More Loving One,” where he writes:
If equal affection cannot be,
Let the more loving one be me.
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