Definition Of Family In 'Fever 1793'

What is the definition of family? Is family just the people descended from a common ancestor, or could it be more than that? The story Fever 1793 written by Laurie Halse Anderson suggests a different meaning of what family truly is. The story is about a 14 year old girl named Mattie Cook who lives in a house above their family's coffee shop in Philadelphia during the time of the Fever outbreak in 1793. Once the fever breaks and her mother becomes feverish, Mattie flees the city with her grandfather only to learn that the disease is everywhere. As the story develops Mattie’s life is flipped upside down. This story suggests that family is not just the people you are related to, but family is the people who are going to be there for you in times of devastation.

In the beginning of the story Mattie's family is a simple, hardworking, small household...“We were only three: Mother, Grandfather, and me, …show more content…
On the journey to go live with the Ludington’s, Mattie and her grandfather are kicked out of their wagon by two men authorized by the town council to check everyone entering the town for yellow fever. “The farmer grabbed me under the arms, pulled me from the wagon, and threw me onto the road. He and the doctor lifted Grandfather and deposited him beside me.”(82) Now that it’s just the two of them they would have to take care of each other until they could muster up the strength to continue their journey on foot back to Philadelphia. “...we two shall care for each other.”(116) Even though Mattie was only with her grandfather, she still thought about her family and loved ones all the time while she was in pain trying to survive the journey back to Philadelphia with grandfather. “No one told stories of a painter’s assistant named Nathaniel or a cook named Eliza. No one told of my mother.”(106)This illustrates that Mattie is always thinking about her family and hoping that nothing bad has come upon