The Charm Offensive

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-3

Chapters 4-5

Chapters 6-7

Chapters 8-9

Chapters 10-12

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

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Themes

LGBTQ+ Love and Representation

Charlie Winshaw’s sexual awakening while he features as the male love interest on a reality dating show with 20 female contestants, demonstrates the ramifications of a lack of LGBTQ+ representation. Raised to hide his emotions and conform to heteronormative expectations, Charlie recalls his father instilling that “real men don’t cry, and they definitely don’t talk publicly about their self-care” (75). Charlie’s lack of exposure to diverse books and television in adolescence becomes apparent as he is introduced to the spectrum of sexuality through his own unfolding attraction to Dev Deshpande. Charlie’s difficulties with self-acceptance are intertwined with his confusion about his sexuality, as he has always been taught that anything outside heteronormativity was morally wrong. Due to this background, Dev and Charlie’s relationship development is troublesome and confusing for Charlie: “The terrifying thing is, he doesn’t know what any of it means” (126). Charlie’s self-discovery while getting to know Dev prevents Charlie the opportunity to learn about his sexuality independently, away from the consuming attraction he feels for his producer.

Ever After’s later development to accurately depict how Charlie and Dev fall in love on the show also illustrates the power of LGBTQ+ love and representation, as it opens the door for their relationship to resume and for others to feel confident in speaking their truths. As Dev views the show after avoiding it for so long, he’s left speechless when he sees his relationship unfold on national television. This representation of his own feelings empowers him to travel to see Charlie at the finale and reignites his relationship with Charlie. As Charlie himself went through his journey self-discovery and sexual identification, he inspired Daphne, the next season’s contestant, to do the same. Though she was originally a contestant attempting to win Charlie’s affections, she also realized her sexual identity after a heteronormative upbringing, in which Barbie and Disney were her examples of love stories. She reiterates her lack of exposure to LGBTQ+ content in her life experience, while those who were not raised in the same way provide a point of contrast that further supports the power of LGBTQ+ representation. Dev, for example, did not see much LGBTQ+ representation during his childhood, but he also was not rejected by his family like Charlie and others often experience. While their lived experiences vary, their struggles to accept themselves in adulthood and believe their worthiness for love illustrates the power of LGBTQ+ love and representation. By fully accepting themselves and accepting their worthiness for love, the characters who struggle with their sexualities in The Charm Offensive reach their own happily ever afters by loving themselves for who they are. This journey is not possible without the representations of LGBTQ+ love that inspire them to do so.

The Significance of Emotional Support From Romantic Partners

The Charm Offensive illustrates the significance of emotional support from romantic partners through Charlie and Dev’s mutual support of each other during their journeys of personal growth. Dev serves as a safe space for Charlie to experience panic and his compulsions, such as cleaning Dev’s shirt stains, with no judgment. Furthermore, Dev’s emotional support is emphasized as he helps Charlie through his moments of panic and anxiety. His attention to detail is what allows Dev to assist Charlie through his struggles, as he taps the word calm in Morse code on Charlie’s shoulder, mimicking what he saw Charlie do to soothe himself on set. Dev communicates his desire to help Charlie in moments of need, deepening their connection: “‘When it gets like this, how can I help?’ Charlie swallows. ‘No one has ever asked me that before’” (95-96). In reassuring Charlie that he wants to help him, Dev communicates that he isn’t disappointed in Charlie and doesn’t see him in a negative light. Dev never judges Charlie like many other characters, instead respectfully and empathetically considering Charlie’s needs. Dev proves himself trustworthy, and Charlie feels safe with him both physically and emotionally, and feels empowered to be there for himself as well.

While Dev provides Charlie with a framework to begin his journey of self-acceptance, Dev proves harder to support for Charlie. Dev has learned to mask his depression through humor and alcohol, and when his depressive episodes become overwhelming, he immediately begins to push those closest to him away. Thus, Dev’s sense of a lack of emotional support he received in his previous relationship with Ryan is colored by his own perspective. Ryan and Jules confront their inability to support Dev, communicating their past attempts and Dev’s consistent rebuffs as a source of their breakdown in relationships. However, Charlie does not allow Dev to check out until Dev physically removes himself to travel back to North Carolina. Charlie refuses to allow Dev to push him away when he cannot get out of bed because of his depression, and realizes that Dev feels vulnerable at his lowest, afraid he will lose the love of the people he cares for deeply in his inability to be his “Fun Dev” identity. Charlie’s support through his symptoms of depression helps Dev to trust himself in feeling consistently worthy of love. Moreover, Charlie encourages Dev to confront his symptoms more aggressively and to grow healthier by attending therapy.

By allowing space for both to discover who they are, Charlie and Dev demonstrate the importance of emotional support from romantic partners. For Charlie, the emotional support he receives inspires him to discover who he is through a lens of self-acceptance. Dev receives emotional support from Charlie through his depression, inspiring him to understand himself beyond his denial of his mental health issues. The men support each other through their struggles as they develop, but also allow space for each other to individually grow as people, resulting in their ability to reunite in a fully emotionally supportive relationship.

Personal Growth and Self-Acceptance

Charlie and Dev both emphasize how personal growth and self-acceptance are necessary to achieve independently before entering into a committed relationship. They want the healthiest, most favorable outcome for each other, regardless of what that looks like for the other person. While supporting each other as best as possible, Charlie and Dev realize their happiness cannot be contingent on another person’s love. Charlie and Dev must understand the parts of themselves that they historically avoid for their relationship to work. For example, by learning to trust Dev, Charlie opens to the possibility of loving a man. Charlie grows through an inquiry about his sexuality by developing a better understanding of what kind of love will make him happiest. Before meeting Dev, Charlie felt obligated to conform to the heteronormative expectations placed on him by his friends and family. When that made him anxious, he avoided dating altogether, missing out on the love and passion he deserves. While Dev assists Charlie at the onset of his self-discovery, Charlie values the months apart from Dev to grow and accept himself independently. Charlie explains to the Ever After live audience, “my time on Ever After helped me become my more authentic self. I learned I deserve love” (342). Although Charlie initially saw his time on Ever After as a hurdle to jump through to improve his public image, he learns to value profound love and committed relationships.

Similarly, Dev learns to confront his depression while allowing others whom he trusts to help him when he experiences depressive episodes. Knowing he must leave Charlie, Dev reflects on how coping with humor and alcohol has become less effective over time:

He’s tired of numbing himself with alcohol every time his heart feels too big inside his chest. He doesn’t want to bury all his feelings and he doesn’t want to keep hiding them from everyone in his life. He doesn’t want to push away love. What he really wants is to be as healthy as he says he is (245).

Dev lies about the seriousness of his depression because he fears he will lose the love of those closest to him. Additionally, Dev lies to himself about his most painful emotions, only choosing to love the version of himself that is fun and happy. By leaving Charlie, Dev decides to work on confronting his mental health more aggressively to grow into the healthiest version of himself. He learns to accept all parts of himself, including his depression diagnosis, which he stops referring to as his “little funks.” Through his journey in therapy, and through Charlie’s time apart from Dev, the two are able to reunite when they take time to grow and accept themselves on their own to enter a successful, committed relationship.