Unhinging the Madness: The Power of a Writer’s Words
By: Elizabeth Wilks
Tags: Alice In Wonderland, Books, Writing Tips, Young Adult Fiction, Writing

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Unhinging the Madness: The Power of a Writer’s Words

A.G. Howard’s Unhinged

Unhinged, the second novel in A. G. Howard’s Splintered trilogy, catches up with Alyssa Gardner a year after the closure of the first novel. Now in her senior year and with graduation fast approaching, Alyssa is trying, but failing, to put her experiences in Wonderland behind her. Morpheus, her netherling guide and potential love interest, warns Alyssa, “If you won’t stay and save Wonderland, I shall bring my own brand of chaos to the human realm. Fight for us, or face the consequences” (Howard 38). Unfortunately for Alyssa, Wonderland needs her to return, and in returning, Alyssa will give up her humanity for madness. The consequences Morpheus hints at come in Alyssa’s fight for balance between her netherling side and her human side, and it’s through Howard’s word choice in these key moments that subtly prepare the reader for the shocking ending.

When the human realm is threatened, Alyssa is forced into tapping into her netherling abilities. Once her abilities are accessed and the human realm is saved, she relishes in her power as queen, “All I have to do is set the power free. Escape the chains of my humanity, let madness be my guide” (Howard 227). In these two sentences, Howard sets up the idea of Alyssa’s humanity as a form of enslavement that needs to be broken in order to fully experience her netherling power. The use of the words “escape,” and “chains” show the confinement Alyssa feels in the human realm. In contrast, the word “free” is used in relation to her power. Alyssa is starting to separate herself into two halves. Her humanity holds her back, while her netherlingness sets her free. Moments later, we see this dichotomy further emphasized when Alyssa claims to be something different than human, “Let the humans run from the flame. I’ll walk straight into it” (Howard 227). The juxtaposition of “humans” in the first sentence with the personal pronoun “I” in the second sentence sets Alyssa apart from the humans. This is further demonstrated by the use of the definite article “the” in front of “humans” to make her something different. The slow partitioning of her human side continues as she confronts Morpheus.

After rescuing both Jeb and Ivory from the clutches of Sister Two, Morpheus goads Alyssa into accepting her netherling side. He too evokes the image of slavery when he says, “release your chains, Alyssa. Set your magic free” (Howard 283). Morpheus’ use of the term “release” implies Alyssa has control. It is her choice to be free or not. It is her choice to be netherling or human. Alyssa uses that control moments later when she traps Morpheus. Again, as we look as what she says, we see the continued pattern of separation, “You do realize that my human side defeated you right? No magic required” (Howard 286). She continually calls attention to her human side, thus becoming something more than human. She becomes “the other.”

Alyssa’s perceived “otherness” in the human realm lands her in the asylum at the end of the novel, where, as she embraces her netherling side, she is no longer a slave to her humanity. This moment of realization comes as a shock for the reader, who, as they have followed Alyssa’s journey through two novels, knows life in the asylum is what Alyssa has always feared, yet she willingly puts on the full Alice charade. She dresses like Alice, talks to bugs and plants, and eats out of tea cups. Although the asylum may try to confine her, in private, she practices her magic and stretches her wings. The acceptance of her unhinged mind sets her free, “I sneak out of my room at night, when all is still and silent. And I watch the humans sleeping, study their vulnerabilities, and savor the fact that I will never be helpless like them again” (Howard 384). We return to the “humans” versus “I” divide where here, the use of the personal pronoun “them” and the possessive pronoun “their” again separates Alyssa from her humanity. It is not Alyssa’s vulnerabilities or helplessness; it is the humans. Alyssa has fully given herself to the madness of Wonderland by forsaking her humanity.

Over the course of the novel, Alyssa has slowly allowed her humanity to be eclipsed by her netherling nature. While the casual reader can see this on the surface level by Alyssa’s actions, the words that are used in these key moments of transformation show the care in which Howard has crafted her novel. The imagery of slavery Howard uses through words like “chains” helps the reader maintain empathy with Alyssa who by the end goes seemingly mad. This is an important characteristic in young adult literature where the acceptance of differences in identity becomes a major theme. We can only hope that readers reading such literature, will continue this acceptance off the page.