We Need to Talk About Kevin Chapter 18: February 1, 2001 Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • Eva secretly stops using birth control and gets pregnant.
  • When Franklin finds out, he is furious.
  • Eva says she had to do it. She wants to find out something about her "soul" (18.35).
  • In other words, Eva wants to know if she's only capable of birthing pure evil.
  • Eva and Franklin tell Kevin he's going to have a sibling. His response: "You're going to be sorry" (18.50). Yikes.
  • Franklin wants nothing to do with naming the baby. It's a girl, and Eva names her Celia, after Franklin's aunt.
  • Celia is the opposite of Kevin right out of the womb. She's quiet, and she doesn't seem to be the spawn of Satan.
  • Franklin thinks she's too quiet. "Babies ought to cry. […] You're raising a doormat" (18.109).
  • But Eva is happy with her little doormat. At least she's welcoming, unlike Kevin.