Monster Chapter 21 Summary

Journal

  • It's five months after the trial, and Steve writes that he is obsessed with self-filming. He talks to the camera about himself: outside, in a mirror, or with Jerry filming.
  • He says his mom doesn't care what he's doing, that she's just happy he's home.
  • His dad told Steve he was happy he didn't have to go to jail, but then he flew the coop, which Steve thinks is because he felt like he didn't know Steve anymore.
  • In Steve's mind, the distance keeps growing.
  • Steve admits that he takes films of himself because he wants to know who he is, too; he wants desperately to figure out what happened that brought him to the defense table in the first place.
  • He wants to know why O'Brien looked away.
  • He ends this journal entry with a haunting question—"What did she see?" (21.6)—which is a fitting note to end the book on, too.