Glitch

Laura Martin

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2020

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-4

Chapters 5-14

Chapters 15-21

Chapters 22-29

Chapters 30-36

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

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Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

Storms

In literature, approaching storms often symbolize change and/or trouble on the “horizon.” This symbolism holds true in Glitch. At the beginning of the novel, before Regan finds the Cocoon that changes her life, she notices a storm coming, which symbolizes how everything is about to change. She observes, “A quick glance at the sky showed an approaching storm. Good. I liked storms. They were wild and unpredictable, and they played by their own rules. Something I both envied and admired” (45). Like the storm, certain time travelers in the novel play by their own rules, ignoring the law that forbids meddling with the past. Unbeknownst to Regan, she is about to become a time-traveling criminal herself, but her reasons for doing this will be ethically sound despite what she’s been taught. The approaching storm symbolizes the upheaval that will be caused by the attack on the Academy, but it also symbolizes the unexpected solution to this problem: Regan and Elliot will prevent the attack through their own criminal activities so that the trouble may pass without destroying everything near and dear to them.

Cadet Uniforms

Even though uniforms are meant to make all students look similar so they can be easily recognized as part of the group, the Academy’s cadet uniforms symbolize individual identity. Most students have lived in campus dorms for most of their lives and have few possessions that are truly theirs to keep. The jackets are a rare exception to this because the students are allowed to keep them. While reinforcing similarities between them as a unit, the jackets also emphasize differences between the students. Each student has their name embroidered on their jacket, marking them as an individual, and students at different levels wear jackets in different colors. Since Elliot has no close living family, few possessions, and little to differentiate himself from other students, his cadet jacket is a prized possession. He especially looks forward to leveling up early so he can get a red jacket that will visibly mark him as the “best” student in his year. However, after Elliot joins the partner program with Regan, his obsession with cadet jackets is forgotten, and they’re not mentioned again. This symbolizes how Elliot and Regan come to prioritize teamwork and the greater good over individual accomplishments.

Butterflies

“Butterflies” is the symbolic name given to time-traveling criminals, those who endeavor to alter the past to change the present. Regan notes that this may seem like a strange nickname because butterflies are “beautiful,” “fluffy,” and mostly harmless. However, butterflies are often symbols of change because they morph from caterpillars to cocoons and, finally, butterflies. Glitch borrows the concept of the butterfly effect to illustrate the dangers of tampering with the past: if a butterfly flapping its wings can contribute to a storm on the other side of the globe, then a tiny, insignificant moment can alter the entire course of history. At first, most characters in the novel focus exclusively on the negative consequences of changing the past, present, and future without considering the possibility that change might be beautiful or positive, like a real butterfly. Regan and Elliot are wary of becoming Butterflies because it’s illegal and they’ve been taught that it’s always morally wrong. However, once a tragic event with disastrous consequences occurs, it’s clear to both kids that changing the past is sometimes safer than keeping it the same. Instead of remaining horrified at the realization that they’ve become “Butterflies,” both kids take pride in knowing that they’ve done what they were trained to do—protect the future of the United States—even if they’ve done so through (positive) change rather than preservation.