The Lovely Bones Essay Example

The Lovely Bones Essay Example The Lovely Bones Paper The Lovely Bones Paper Novel text: The lovely bones A study of the writing techniques Sebold uses to engage with the readers. Focus on: 1. Narrative style -1st Person Narrative -Tone -Imagery 2. Use of Flashbacks 3. Symbols 4. Names of characters Themes: ? Death ? Grief ? Healing ? Loss of innocence ? Isolation /Ostracism ? Family relationships -coping with loss and change Study of Techniques 1. NARRATIVE STYLE First Person -An intimate relationship is formed immediately so that we side with Susie instantly and begin to allow ourselves to be consumed by Susie’s tragedy -1st sentence. She confides in us -not only rape/murder (Chap 1), but her first kiss (p14), the secret, revealing photo of her mother (p 43), her hiding spots (p145) etc, we form a relationship of trust. â€Å"I WANT TO GROW UP† P19 Tone -Unsentimental tone -Chilling description -see imagery (imagery and tone work together to create sympathy) -Sebold’s narrative is void of feeling and sentiment -as if she does this so w e the readers fill it with our own emotive reactions empathy Imagery The strong and graphic imagery used evokes a strong emotional reaction from the reader -uses strong imagery to reinforce relationship between Susie and reader because we feel deep sympathy for what has happened to Susie. -â€Å"fitting my limbs together†-p8 -â€Å"he had put me in a waxy cloth sack†¦tumbled together with my knees fingers and toes†¦Ã¢â‚¬  -p50 -â€Å"town of floating graves† p182 USE OF FLASHBACKS -a technique that acts as a vehicle in allowing us to understand characters better, and feel sympathy for them flashbacks are scattered right through the novel Different ways flashbacks are used: Sympathy for Susie -Happy, normal childhood memories juxtaposed with her cruel reality. first kiss p13 -Everything precious memory of Susie’s is ruined by Mr. Harvey -flashbacks stylistic device used to further our hatred for Mr. Harvey and our sympathy for Mr. Harvey. sinkhole p51 -Technique of contrast -contrast present sadness of her life with youthful happiness of her stolen past. To understand characters contrast them before and after Susie’s death -we see them deal with death, loss grief in different ways. Jack Salmon Many memories of him being perfect father, p7, p51 then we see him deteriorate to a broken man carrying the guilt of not being there for Susie when she needed him p58 Contrast of happy memories with Abigail strong marriage to breakdown of marriage due to Susie’s death. Mr. Harvey -Even as the villain, flashbacks are used to conjure sympathy for Mr. Harvey. They are used to expose his disturbing/traumatic childhood and force the reader to see him as once innocent and more human. p188- 189, p97 With these flashbacks we must consider Mr. Harvey as a victim and his own inability to deal with loss and grief, (like Jack Salmon they both ostracize themselves from society). 3. SYMBOLS There is much symbolism within the text just a few to consider: To symbolise theme of healing and loss Salmon family must accept Susie’s death and find a new support structure amongst themselves. This colloquial term provokes humour in the family, and the â€Å"o’† is a reference to an Irish dialect. Sebold shows the reader that she changes the atmosphere within the family. In contrast to this, in the other extract she tells Lindsey that Abigail is â€Å"a wreck†, as if provoking Lindsey into conversation. Sebold uses to show the reader that as well as making a scene relaxed and humorous, she also is able to use colloquial language to talk about difficult, sensitive issues with the family. Lynn is characterised by Sebold through her excessive vanity, obsessed with the idea of beauty she does not reply to Abigail’s comment regarding her looks and immediately jumps into conversation regarding Jack and his suspicions. Later in this scene she then pressurises Abigail into letting her â€Å"do a makeover†, and when Lindsey asks Lynn to teach her about makeup, Sebold shows Lynn to be rejoiced about this by saying â€Å"My God in heaven, praise the Lord, yes! †. The use of exclamatives emphasises her vanity, as the reader can see her excitement in being able to teach her granddaughter about makeup. This also shows the reader the relationship she has with her family – her daughter is reluctant to let her get anywhere near her with â€Å"those instruments of torture†, which indicates that it may have happened to her previously with disastrous consequences, however her granddaughter is willing to do undergo this, to encourage Lindsey’s transformation from a teenager into a woman. This is reiterated when Lynn helps Susie find an outfit, where Lynn attempts to find Susie a â€Å"nice outfit† from her wardrobe. The idea of looks and appearance begins to rub off on Lindsey, who says that she â€Å"needs to look pretty†, an ideology closely followed by Lynn. Sebold also shows Lynn to be a frequent drinker, with her dependence on alcohol shown throughout the novel. As soon as she is introduced she is shown to drink excessively as she says â€Å"no one has to tell me where the liquor is! † The use of exclamatives in this sentence emphasises the idea that she has visited the Salmon family before, and that she drank excessively then. This can be seen as an ‘inside joke’ between the family. However, Sebold emphasises the point that she is dependent when she says to Jack â€Å"we need some stiff drinks†. The pronoun â€Å"we† is used to draw the attention away from herself, to make it look like she isn’t the only one who wants a drink. Lynn’s lexical choices also enhance her alcoholism, as Sebold uses the adjective â€Å"stiff† to describe how she wants the drinks to be strong, to help cope with the memorial. Sebold portrays Lynn as a very dominant character through the relationships she has with her family. When talking to others she controls the conversation through the use of interrogatives and through this is able to bring up sensitive areas with the family. She asks Abigail â€Å"how is he? † when Jack has left the room, and when he returns quickly drops conversation with â€Å"but†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . This ellipsis shows the reader how, although dominative, she is also sensitive to her family and does not want to upset anybody. This is shown again in the other extract where Lynn tells Lindsey â€Å"You are pretty†, which shocks both Lindsey and Susie as Lynn rarely gives out compliments. Lynn is shown to be a very caring member of the family, despite being somewhat flawed, and the way that she impacts upon the family after she has arrived shows that she plays a key role in the novel. Through her use of colloquial language, Sebold shows us that she is able to change the atmosphere of each scene, from humorous to very serious, and the varied sentence structures that Sebold uses portrays Lynn’s views and opinions, and structures her character.