58 pages • 1 hour read
Sally RooneyIntermezzo
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2024A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part 3, Chapters 16-17Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 3, Chapter 16 Summary
Wondering how the fight would have ended if their father were still around, Ivan remains furious about the disrespect Peter expressed for him and their gentle father. The fight makes Ivan realize how capable of cruelty they are in the absence of their father, which upsets his sense of reality.
Christine calls Ivan. Ivan reports that he has been practicing for his upcoming competition. She asks if he is seeing anyone. Ivan doesn’t want to talk about it or to spend the holidays with his stepfather’s family in Scotland. Christine is concerned that Ivan will be alone for the holidays.
Humiliated by his brother’s strength, Ivan despises Peter. He also fears life going on without his father, who no longer exists in the material world but in the world of memory. Ivan calls Margaret, whose mother has had a predictably bad reaction to her relationship with Ivan. When Ivan asks if he is ruining her life, Margaret detects that something is wrong. Ivan reports the fight he had with Peter and weeps over the criticisms Peter made about their father. He has been unable to accept his father’s death, regrets everything he failed to do for him, and worries that if he forgets his father, he will wipe him away from existence.
Margaret’s mother Bridget confronts Margaret about Ivan, castigating her on Ricky’s behalf and blaming her for every bad thing that has happened in their family. Margaret has helped her siblings and Anna, but has received little help in return. She is angrily cleaning the cottage when Ivan calls to tell her about the fight with his brother. She realizes that with Ivan, she won’t be free of bad feelings; those feelings might come to her through him.
Ivan arrives at Margaret’s cottage. Margaret expresses her guilt about being in Ivan’s life, preventing him from meeting people his age. Ivan becomes upset that Bridget has poisoned Margaret’s thoughts and argues that his family has no say in how he lives his life. When Margaret asks what Peter might think of her, Ivan refuses to answer. She quickly intuits that their age gap is the cause of the rift between the brothers.
Margaret and Ivan go to bed. They kiss and have sex, during which Ivan affirms his love for Margaret. Margaret declares her need for Ivan’s love. Ivan promises to give her what she needs. He climaxes inside her, which she assures him is alright. She affirms her love for him as well.
Margaret admits that Bridget was right about Margaret’s marriage to Ricky: She thought herself better than him. Ivan feels the same way with his brother, comparing himself to Peter without examining his own flaws. Ivan likes being needed by Margaret; he could live his whole life that way. Margaret realizes that he sincerely wants to experience the mysteries of the future with her, which suggests new possibilities in her life as well.
The following day, Margaret opens up the arts center and prepares for an upcoming performance of a Samuel Beckett play. She thinks about being the town scandal and imagines integrating Ivan into her life only to have him finally meet someone his age. She also considers that this may never happen and that they may laugh at the idea together many years down the road.
Part 3, Chapter 17 Summary
Peter travels back to Dublin from Christine’s house. He continues to have intrusive thoughts as he recalls his humiliation in front of Sylvia.
He enters his apartment and is so shocked to find both Sylvia and Naomi there that he collapses and is briefly unconscious. When he comes to, he learns that Naomi has been concerned about his erratic behavior. She reached out to Sylvia and entered the apartment using Sylvia’s spare key. They are glad to learn that Peter is alright.
Naomi tells Peter that his death would have affected her. He has been callous to her, never bringing her into his life, especially when his father died. They both admit to have exploited each other, but also confess that they have developed feelings for each other. Naomi says she loves him. He reciprocates. Still, the complications between them remain unresolved.
Sylvia invites Peter to go for a walk. Peter tells her about his fight with Ivan. He clarifies that his behavior isn’t the result of the misunderstanding between Sylvia and him. Sylvia admits that she placed Peter in an impossible situation, forcing him to move on but making him want to be with her anyway. They apologize to one another. Sylvia recognizes Peter’s love for Naomi and encourages him to pursue Naomi in spite of the feelings he still has for Sylvia. When Peter hesitates, Sylvia suggests an arrangement among the three of them. Peter is embarrassed by the idea, but also thrilled about their reconciliation.
Peter, Naomi, and Sylvia settle into a routine. During the day, Peter and Naomi are together. In the evenings, Naomi goes out with her friends while Peter has dinner with Sylvia. Language has no appropriate label for their relationship, but the arrangement is sustainable even if it defies the conventional expectations of monogamy. Peter has always been willing to defend those engaged in polygamous relationships, as he stands up for and protects the marginalized. Until now, however, Peter has never had to be one of the marginalized, which fills him with anxiety. He braces himself to live through the experiment of his relationships with Sylvia and Naomi.
Christine sends Peter an article that Ivan is on track to win his second norm, which is required to achieve IM status. Peter finds the hotel where the event is taking place and goes to see Ivan on his birthday. Fearing that his presence will distract Ivan, Peter stays outside the competition room, watching the game progress live on his phone. A woman approaches Peter—it is Margaret, who introduces herself as Ivan’s friend. She has remained outside the game venue to avoid distracting him as well.
They talk about their respective backgrounds. Margaret wonders if Peter thinks poorly of her, but Peter reassures her. They acknowledge that families are naturally complicated. Peter fondly speaks about how much his father would have wanted to be there to congratulate Ivan. He describes his father as being a very decent man.
Ivan wins his norm. Peter sends Margaret in, backing away because he doesn’t want to ruin Ivan’s moment, but Margaret insists on telling Ivan that Peter is there. Peter realizes his initial assumptions about Margaret were wrong. When Ivan comes out, Peter tears up. They embrace as Peter congratulates and apologizes to Ivan. He indicates that their father would have been proud of him. Outside, Peter tells Ivan how much he likes Margaret. Ivan promises to be nicer to Naomi. When Peter indicates that both Naomi and Sylvia are in his life, Ivan affirms their decision to be together.
The brothers express mutual admiration of each other. Ivan regrets neglecting Peter’s feelings in the past and thanks him for everything he did for Ivan and their father while their father was sick. Peter apologizes for disrespecting their father. Ivan and Peter tell each other that they love each other. They briefly mention their vague belief in God before talking about their plans for Christmas. Ivan invites Peter to join him and Margaret in Kildare for Christmas and bring anyone else. They part ways, assuring each other that they are happy. Peter looks forward to telling Naomi and Sylvia what Ivan thinks of them. He looks forward to Christmas.
Part 3, Chapters 16-17 Analysis
Bringing Sylvia and Naomi together is a catharsis for Peter—so much so that he has a physical reaction to seeing them in the same space, fainting when he realizes they have joined forces. This confrontation is necessary to breaking the cycle of self-loathing that Peter is trapped in; in the aftermath, Peter can no longer use these relationships to cope with his self-esteem and his loneliness but must instead manage his emotional life by himself. The women’s effort comes from a place of genuine concern for Peter: Naomi reaches out to Sylvia, her ostensible rival, because she cannot bear the thought of Peter harming himself. Although they are still not given narratorial agency, Sylvia and Naomi now get to define Peter: They agree that his attitude mirrors a child’s perspective of relationships, demanding total control and disregards the inner lives of his romantic partners in the fear that they hate him. Peter’s anxiety is actually a projection of his own embarrassment and self-loathing.
Peter’s need for control also explains his dynamic with Ivan, which comes to a head with their confrontation and fight. As an older brother, Peter has always wanted to project the image that he is better than Ivan, which is why he couldn’t process the idea that Ivan could enter a romantic relationship with maturity and thoughtfulness. Peter’s protection has become overbearing and unwanted; he has also failed to be vulnerable enough to rely on the protection of others. In contrast, Ivan learns to be protective of Margaret’s small-town circumstances, and contacts Sylvia for help with the troubling Peter. Peter’s realization that he must learn from Ivan completes the arc of the Sibling Dynamics and Romantic Relationships theme.
Peter, Margaret, and Ivan arrive at the conclusion that none of them can definitively work out the shape of an abstractly “normal” life through logic, exposing The Limits of Language. Margaret is consumed with anxiety that Ivan will find someone better suited to him at his age, but after her relationship becomes public knowledge, she begins to entertain the possibility that their love might survive. Ivan likewise acknowledges his need to live on to distract himself from the grief of losing his father. His connection to Margaret gives him someone to look—an outlet to direct his loving energy other than his father. Finally, Peter accepts that he cannot predict the outcome of his relationships with Sylvia and Naomi. Rather, he must live through them to discover the outcome for himself. This calls him to open himself up to vulnerability and risk humiliation to uncover new possibilities in his interpersonal relationships. He thus submits his need to control those relationships and grows beyond his initial character flaws.
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