Period of Grief
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold follows the life of Susie Salmon, who is the victim of a brutal rape and murder at the hands of her neighbor Mr. Harvey. Once dead, Salmon and her family both struggle with accepting her death. Susie specifically struggles with letting go of life and those she loves back on Earth. For this reason, she and her family remain stuck in the In-Between, which is her own version of Heaven. With her case remaining unsolved for years, her family is thrown into a long period of grieving. Throughout the book, Salmon watches as her family slowly falls apart. Through setting, structure, imagery, and symbolism, Sebold expresses her view that all humans express grief differently.
The setting in the book suggests Susie’s confinement within the terms of her death. The Lovely Bones is set during the 1970’s. During this time period, horrific scenarios like murder and rape were not commonly discussed. In Sebold’s words, “It was still back when people believed things like that didn't happen” (CITE). When Susie first went missing, thinking something bad had occurred to her was not in …show more content…
People learn to cope with loss differently. The Salmons specifically, used isolation as a coping mechanism. During the grieving period, those grieving are expected to act a certain way for a certain period of time. Jack became known as the crazy man of the town because he was still chasing Susie’s murder months after her death in the cornfield. Sebold explores how one’s death can affect people different, by building friends or destroying homes. Susie’s family is torn apart for a while. While this is occurring, Ray and Ruth, Susie’s middle school crush and the last person Susie touched before she left this planet, are building a friendship. Sebold gives grief a new definition, one that is not the typical suffering
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold follows the life of Susie Salmon, who is the victim of a brutal rape and murder at the hands of her neighbor Mr. Harvey. Once dead, Salmon and her family both struggle with accepting her death. Susie specifically struggles with letting go of life and those she loves back on Earth. For this reason, she and her family remain stuck in the In-Between, which is her own version of Heaven. With her case remaining unsolved for years, her family is thrown into a long period of grieving. Throughout the book, Salmon watches as her family slowly falls apart. Through setting, structure, imagery, and symbolism, Sebold expresses her view that all humans express grief differently.
The setting in the book suggests Susie’s confinement within the terms of her death. The Lovely Bones is set during the 1970’s. During this time period, horrific scenarios like murder and rape were not commonly discussed. In Sebold’s words, “It was still back when people believed things like that didn't happen” (CITE). When Susie first went missing, thinking something bad had occurred to her was not in …show more content…
People learn to cope with loss differently. The Salmons specifically, used isolation as a coping mechanism. During the grieving period, those grieving are expected to act a certain way for a certain period of time. Jack became known as the crazy man of the town because he was still chasing Susie’s murder months after her death in the cornfield. Sebold explores how one’s death can affect people different, by building friends or destroying homes. Susie’s family is torn apart for a while. While this is occurring, Ray and Ruth, Susie’s middle school crush and the last person Susie touched before she left this planet, are building a friendship. Sebold gives grief a new definition, one that is not the typical suffering