Trauma and Trust Theme Analysis

Orbiting Jupiter suggests that for traumatized adolescents to overcome their trauma, they need a small, supportive community that they can trust. One of the novel’s two main characters, Joseph Brook, is a 14-year-old who has experienced considerable trauma. His father, Mr. Brook, beats him. His beloved girlfriend Madeleine dies as a result of giving birth to their baby, Jupiter, whom Joseph is not allowed to see. Finally, at a juvenile detention facility called Stone Mountain, Joseph is repeatedly beaten by other boys—and, it is implied, sexually assaulted. As a result, when Joseph arrives at his first foster placement with the Hurd family, he won’t let anyone touch him or stand behind him. Yet the Hurds—a supportive and loving family—slowly win Joseph’s trust. 12-year-old Jack Hurd saves Joseph after Joseph falls through thin ice on a river and fights on Joseph’s side when bullies attack Joseph in their middle-school locker room. Mr. Hurd teaches Joseph how to milk cows, models good fatherhood for him, and searches for him persistently when he runs away in a snowstorm. Mrs. Hurd shows Joseph love and consideration. The novel suggests that the Hurds’ care has helped Joseph overcome some of his trauma when Joseph thanks Jack for “having his back” and allows Mr. Hurd to touch his back supportively without flinching—when Joseph first came to live with the Hurds, he wouldn’t let anyone stand behind him. Thus, the novel underscores the importance of a trustworthy community for adolescents healing from trauma.