Middlesex: Book 4: Last Stop Summary & Analysis

After learning that Cal is intersex, Julie jokes that she might still be considered his “last stop.” They go back to his apartment, have drinks, and dance. When she turns off the lights before they have sex, she claims it is because she herself is shy. Embracing her, Cal suggests that he might be her “last stop,” too.  

Back in 1975, Chapter Eleven comes to San Francisco and collects Cal from jail. When Chapter Eleven sees his brother for the first time, he stares at him placidly. Thanks to taking so much acid, Chapter Eleven is very open-minded. Like Cal, he also looks different, with shorter hair and a wide-lapel shirt. The brothers hug, and Chapter Eleven says, “Dad’s dead.” He explains the story, saying that Father Mike confessed everything, and that all the money was found in his car. Cal asks how Tessie is doing, and Chapter Eleven explains that she’s angry at Milton for having gone to the train station without telling her.

Chapter Eleven takes care of the bureaucracy of Milton’s death, and doesn’t ask Cal anything about the Sixty-Niners or his arrest. He admits that it’s “pretty weird” to know about Cal’s condition and everything he went through at the clinic, and Cal says he finds it weird, too. Once they land in Detroit, Cal requests that Chapter Eleven drive them through downtown so he can see it. The city is less bustling than it once was; Greektown is at the beginning of a long decline. As they are driving, a man in a leather coat and “space funk goggles” catches Cal’s eye. When the man gives an angry look back, Cal realizes that he has become not just a man, but “The Man.”

When they pull up on Middlesex, Cal feels profoundly moved. Chapter Eleven starts carrying Cal’s suitcase for him, but then, jokingly, hands it over and says Cal can carry it himself. When Tessie sees Cal, she cannot help but feel disturbed, feeling that there is a “criminal aspect” to his new look. However, when they embrace each other, Tessie gently strokes Cal’s hair while he cries. She asks if it wouldn’t have been simpler for Cal to stay as he was, but Cal explains that this is how he was. In the end, Cal’s gender transition is less “dramatic” than he could have ever expected. Although he is a man, there are ways in which he remains “Tessie’s daughter.” He’ll take care of Tessie when she gets old, and they still go to Sophie’s salon together for haircuts.

Just as Tessie, Cal, and Chapter Eleven are finally ready to go to Milton’s funeral, a voice comes through the intercom, calling for Tessie. It is Desdemona, who has remained bedridden for all these years. During this time, Desdemona largely faded from Cal’s mind. Now, she asks Tessie for her Epsom salts, and complains that since everyone else is dead, it’s unfair that she’s still alive. After speaking with her, Tessie explains that Desdemona is not doing well, and has begun to lose her mental faculties. When Tessie told her that Milton was dead, she sobbed wildly, but within a few hours had forgotten and asked for him as if he was still alive.

Cal asks if he can go and see her, and though Tessie is initially hesitant, she agrees, pointing out that whatever happens, Desdemona will forget. Cal brings his grandmother her Epsom salts, along with a piece of baklava. Her room is dark, and the TV is on. The silkworm box remains sitting near her bed, overflowing with “mementos.” Seeing Desdemona, Cal is enchanted by her long, fine, grey hair. When Desdemona sees him, she exclaims, “Lefty!” But Cal explains that it is him, her grandson. Apologetically, Desdemona admits that she doesn’t remember him. Cal talks about Bithynios, saying that he’s going to go and fix the church there one day. 

Desdemona asks Cal to prepare her Epsom salts and help her out of bed. Once Cal helps her get into the chair and soak her feet in the salts, she closes her eyes in contentment. After a few minutes, she opens her eyes again and, staring right at Cal, shouts, “Calliope!” Desdemona’s impaired cognizance actually helps her to process the fact that Cal is now a boy. She explains to Cal that there used to be girls who turned into boys back in Bithynios, and Cal explains that it’s genetic. Desdemona then says, “It’s all my fault.” She explains that she thought incest was outlawed for religious reasons, and didn’t realize it could affect babies. She says she was “just stupid girl from village.”  

When Cal asks, Desdemona explains that Lefty was her third cousin, but also her brother. Cal is stunned. At this moment, Tessie calls out to Cal, saying it’s time to go. Cal says he’s going to say with Desdemona. Imitating Milton, he says he refuses to go into a church that charges such outrages prices for candles. Laughing, Tessie agrees to let Cal stay. Looking at him, Desdemona says, “My spoon was right.” Cal promises not to tell Desdemona’s secret, but Desdemona says he can tell people after she dies.

Milton receives the full Greek Orthodox Funeral he would have hated. Father Mike does not officiate; he has been sentenced to two years in prison. Aunt Zo divorces him and moves to New Smyrna Beach, Florida, with Desdemona. Before long, Tessie joins them. Desdemona dies in 1980. During Milton’s funeral, Tessie places his wedding crown inside the casket. Cal remains at Middlesex, performing the ritual of guarding the door so that Milton’s spirit doesn’t reenter. This is a man’s job, which Cal can now do. Although it is bitterly cold, he stays resolutely still in the doorway. He cries, thinking about Milton and the future.