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Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.
The Absurdity of Gender Stereotypes
The novel explores the absurdity of stereotyping, illustrating the ways Charlie and Nick are misunderstood and punished when they defy their classmates’ expectations about gender and sexuality. Charlie and Nick’s peers hold many limited notions of what it means to be gay, straight, male, and female and are naive to the fact that these identities exist on a spectrum. For example, many of the students at Truham respond to Charlie’s coming out by bullying him, which serves to enforce their rigid ideas of what it means to be a boy and to punish Charlie for defying their expectations. Their logic is absurd and assumes that Charlie exists in a binary in which he is either a straight boy and one of them or a gay boy whom they ostracize. Their belief in gender stereotypes prevent Charlie’s classmates from seeing him as a full person, and their homophobic slurs and hurtful gossip reduce Charlie, in their view, to a caricature of a gay person.
Charlie’s friend Tao has a more complex view of gender and sexuality, but even he struggles to understand that gender expression is not a reliable indicator of sexual preference. Tao dismisses the idea that Nick could be romantically interested in Charlie because, according to his logic, boys who play sports and call their friends “mate” aren’t gay. This logic echoes Nick’s teammates’, who fail to understand why Nick invited Charlie to the team, assuming a gay boy can’t play sports. Though their teammates witness Charlie and Nick flirting, hugging, and spending time together, they struggle to see that they might be falling for each other. Their preconceived notions trump the evidence that is right in front of their eyes. Miss Singh provides a cogent, mature counterpoint to their assumptions, warning that stereotypes are rude and even dangerous. She also schools the boys on the idea that sexuality is a spectrum. Finally, Harry foists his own beliefs about Nick’s sexuality onto Nick and Tara both, exposing them to the taunts of their peers. When Harry discovers Nick’s connection with Charlie, he finds it unimaginable that Nick could have a crush on Charlie. This failure of imagination suggests that Harry’s limited ideas about gender and sexuality prevent him from fully seeing other people. They do not allow room for people to grow, expand, or have new experiences. Charlie and Nick struggle against these dangerous beliefs, which hinder them in the process of self-discovery.
The Unknowability of Other People’s Intentions
Through the contrast between Charlie’s introspection and Nick’s silence, the novel explores how difficult it is to truly know another person. Charlie is a deeply introspective character who spends much of his time exploring his feelings and those of his peers. While this trait gives him unusual insight into his world, it also leaves him frustrated because he inevitably cannot know what other people are thinking or why they behave as they do. This limited understanding is part of the reason he ends up in a problematic relationship with Ben. When Ben initiates a physical connection, Charlie doesn’t know that Ben has no intention of taking their relationship any further than that.
Charlie proceeds more cautiously with Nick, in part because of his reputation as an athletic boy whose peers assume he’s straight. But Charlie is also cautious with Nick because he can’t get a handle on Nick’s motives, questioning even the simple act of Nick saying hi to him every day outside of class. Charlie doesn’t know whether Nick is being nice or somehow setting him up for a practical joke. This uncertainty, exacerbated by Charlie’s experience of being bullied by boys like Nick, leaves Charlie hopeful but confused. It also starts to form an aura of mystery around Nick that Charlie finds compelling. Not knowing can be frustrating, but it can also be titillating, and Nick’s unknowability is part of his allure for Charlie.
The Difficult Journey of Self-Discovery
Many young characters in Heartstopper struggle to understand their identities, actions, and motivations. Charlie has made a good start on the path of self-knowledge by understanding his sexuality, coming out to his friends, and grappling with tough consequences, but his journey is far from over. While Charlie knows who he is in terms of his sexuality, he doesn’t understand his own behavior—for example, why he agrees to make out with Ben when it makes him feel bad about himself. Other characters similarly struggle to understand themselves. For example, Ben seems indifferent to naming or discovering the nuances of his own sexuality, suggesting that he’s still working to understand his identity. Because he lacks insight into his own motivations, he blithely uses others to get what he wants.
In contrast, Nick assumes that he knows who he is. He doesn’t seem to question his role as an athletic, popular boy, sharing his peers’ assumptions that he’s straight. His encounters with Charlie challenge these assumptions, and Nick remains open to exploring the reasons why. He reflects on his feelings for Charlie, listens when his mother says that he seems more like himself with Charlie, and questions his sexuality in light of his feelings. In this way, Nick models a process of open self-discovery that can lead to greater insight and self-knowledge.
