Caitlin's Inner Struggle

3 Pages 633 Words

Have you ever been in a situation in your life that you wanted to get out of but at the same time you couldn’t or simply didn’t want to? This often feels like you’re stuck in a dream and can’t wake up. In the novel Dreamland by Sarah Dessen, the protagonist, Cailtin, finds herself being taken to “Dreamland” by her new boyfriend and she can’t decide whether to leave this dream or not. From the very first moment Caitlin met Rogerson, to the day he started hitting her, until the end when Rogerson is arrested, Cailtin is faced with an inner struggle between leaving or staying with him.
The day Cailtin met Rogerson she realizes he is bad news. Rogerson is a drug dealer, so every night he goes around parties to make new deals while Cailtin either waits in car or goes along. This circuit soon becomes a routine, and Cailtin starts to smoke and do drugs along with her new boyfriend. Caitlin later finds out from her friends that Rogerson has been expelled from different schools and he is now serving various community service projects to make up for all the trouble he has been in. Cailtin is also introduced to her boyfriend’s family and she becomes aware of the unpleasant and not very loving relationship between them. Cailtin is conscious of Rogerson’s bad life, but she enjoys being with him. Rogerson gives her the attention she doesn’t get from being the sidekick of her beautiful and popular best friend. Rogerson doesn’t know much about her so she is free to act the anyway she wants, be someone new and have a different life. Cailtin becomes deeply involved with Rogerson, and soon experiences his “troubles” first-hand.
After dating for a few months, the couple has an argument that leads to Rogerson hitting his girlfriend and the start of a physically abusive relationship. In a hot summer, the two make plans to go out. Struggling with her school work, Cailtin loses track of time and is late for her date. The couple argu...