Chapter 6: The Happy Medium

Summary The Happy Medium next uses her crystal ball to show the children a battle between the Dark Thing and the stars. Mrs. Whatsit explains that they have just witnessed a star sacrificing its life to fight the Dark Thing, and Charles Wallace correctly guesses that Mrs. Whatsit was once a star who gave up her celestial existence in this way. The children are deeply moved by her sacrifice, and Charles Wallace kisses her in …

…that Mr. Murry has run off with another woman. Yet this woman differs little from the mothers on Camazotz who consider the "Aberration" of the dropped ball a cause for horror. In both worlds, there is no room for love amidst an overwhelming demand for conformity, order, and logical explanation. Although Meg does not recognize these parallels now, her ultimate understanding of them will enable her to rescue her brother from the clutches of IT.