Weird Relationship Dynamic; Was Steve Throwing His Life Away for Roxy?

Use this forum to discuss the August 2022 Book of the Month, "Wild World", by Peter S. Rush
Wesley Friday
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Weird Relationship Dynamic; Was Steve Throwing His Life Away for Roxy?

Post by Wesley Friday »

Whilst reading the novel, right from the start I felt like Steve was throwing his life away for Roxy. Whilst Roxy was set on becoming a doctor, Steve was putting law school on hold in order to be close to Roxy and to please her by joining the Providence Police Force. I think Roxy's love for Steve was tied to Steve's continuous involvement in the anti-establishment movement and that was Steve's major fear that if he ever stopped to do anything else, that love would disappear. It seemed to me to be a weird relationship dynamic where Steve was constantly the chaser. If this were reality and Steve was your friend, judging from the relationship dynamic would you advise him to go to law school or join Providence PD and stay with Roxy?
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Post by Riya Sarkar »

Given that joining the Providence PD was more important to Steve than going to law school, I would have advised him to follow his heart but if Roxy were the sole reason he had stayed back then that definitely would have been a wrong choice.
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Ochieng Omuodo
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Post by Ochieng Omuodo »

Isn't it always the way that in any relationship there has to be a chaser? Anyway, Steve and Roxy DID end up together, so he made the right decision. I'd have advised him to go to law school. But the truth is, if he didn't stay with Roxy, their relationship would have died. There are no absolute rights and wrongs in life, right?
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Post by DyanaFl »

Whether the decision to join Providence PD was good or bad, the fact that Steve's main motive was to just stay close to Roxy does not sound good. They were still figuring themselves out and betting on a life together was Steve rushing into things. If Steve was my friend, I would probably advise him to go on to law school. So yes, Steve might have been throwing his life away for Roxy. He just was lucky he made a pretty big difference along the way, but that I will give him all the credit for.
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Post by Not available anymore »

I feel like inasmuch his decision to join the force was partly because of Roxy he actually wanted to do it for himself as well because his encounter with Sergeant Durk gave him a new perspective
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Post by Eruore Ekpoh »

I believe that Steve was throwing his life away for Roxy. Steve made too many sacrifices to be with her. He felt obligated to stay close to her because he didn't was her to feel lonely as she had lost too many close to her, and despite all that, she still betrayed his trust.
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Post by María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda »

Wesley Friday wrote: 14 Aug 2022, 16:50 Whilst reading the novel, right from the start I felt like Steve was throwing his life away for Roxy. Whilst Roxy was set on becoming a doctor, Steve was putting law school on hold in order to be close to Roxy and to please her by joining the Providence Police Force. I think Roxy's love for Steve was tied to Steve's continuous involvement in the anti-establishment movement and that was Steve's major fear that if he ever stopped to do anything else, that love would disappear. It seemed to me to be a weird relationship dynamic where Steve was constantly the chaser. If this were reality and Steve was your friend, judging from the relationship dynamic would you advise him to go to law school or join Providence PD and stay with Roxy?
The problem was the intention behind staying in Providence and the fact that this was not a reciprocal relationship. If Steve had decided to stay in Providence simply because he thought it was the best idea, that's fine. But it seemed as if every decision he took was to please Roxy. And honestly, she didn't care much about pleasing him. Her only focus was her career. Again, that's perfectly fine. But it doesn't make for a fair relationship.
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Post by Stella Edogun »

I would advise him to go to law school. I felt like he was putting his life on his just to be with her. He was always making sacrifices while she wasn't putting in any effort.
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Post by IbrahimOtegbade »

I understand Steve's love for Roxy. Steve chose to join the police to change the system, even though he wasn't much of an activist, and to impress Roxy. Roxy's ex was an activist, so he must have thought she would like him if he became one.
He must have made the decision of changing the system after he saw the violence against students protesting in Ohio. If I was his friend, I'd advise him to follow his dream and fight corruption through legal means. But I think he chose the police because of "power" in the uniform.
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Deepanshu Tushir
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Post by Deepanshu Tushir »

I don't think Steve was throwing his life away for Roxy. Joining the police department was his own decision, as he wanted to stop corruption and police brutality.
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Post by Zainab Wasif »

I agree. I think he was a little insecure about his relationship with Roxy and he feared losing her all the time since she was his first real girlfriend. His decision to join the Providence was partly because of staying close to Roxy. He also feared that if he went away, Roxy would find some other shoulder to cry on and would not need him anymore. But both Steve’s and Roxy’s character were dynamic, they matured with time and ultimately they went separate ways but did not lose touch.
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Post by Yasmine M »

If I had a friend like Steve in real life, I would advise him to finish his studies and only partake in political activities afterwards. Roxy should be less selfish, in the story she is expecting a lot from Steve.
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Post by Obi Egbuniwe »

I agree. There was such a weird power imbalance between Steve and Roxy. Seemed he was constantly trying to prove his relevance to Roxy. At the end of the day his choices sort if panned out so I guess that's the most important thing.
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Post by Fajarr »

There are no absolute rights and wrongs in life, right? Agree to this statement
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Post by Lindiwe Chakhala »

Wesley Friday wrote: 14 Aug 2022, 16:50 Whilst reading the novel, right from the start I felt like Steve was throwing his life away for Roxy. Whilst Roxy was set on becoming a doctor, Steve was putting law school on hold in order to be close to Roxy and to please her by joining the Providence Police Force. I think Roxy's love for Steve was tied to Steve's continuous involvement in the anti-establishment movement and that was Steve's major fear that if he ever stopped to do anything else, that love would disappear. It seemed to me to be a weird relationship dynamic where Steve was constantly the chaser. If this were reality and Steve was your friend, judging from the relationship dynamic would you advise him to go to law school or join Providence PD and stay with Roxy?
If Steve was my friend, I would have advised to him to consider himself more than Roxanne. I would not place focus on her cause it would only drive him closer to her. I would focus on the conversation on him and his dreams. I read the book and from the very beginning I also felt sad for him. He really gave up his identity to fuel her. I became very disappointed when she cheated but he flipped it to take the blame. Thankfully it is a relationship that took place in his twenties and not later in life. He would be able to bounce back quicker. The ending suited him.
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