Human Qualities

Humans are naturally very complex characters, which challenges an author to successfully portray a recognizable human being to the reader. Emotion is a key element that brings fictional characters to life. The reader is able to identify with an author’s characters when he or she can relate to the emotions described in the novel. The author needs to develop multi-dimensional characters that experience the same triumphs and hardships as humans. Fictional characters need to be believable and demonstrate the same elements found in everyday life. Alice Sebold, author of The Lovely Bones, utilizes colorful language to describe the emotions that flow through each character in response to Susie’s death, particularly Abigail Salmon.

The Salmon family learns that in a second, your whole world can be turned upside down. Learning that one of your children has been abducted and will not be coming home again is a thought that is extremely hard to digest. Abigail represents parents in the world today, who cannot accept the horrible truth that one of their children is gone forever. Her reaction is in sharp contrasts from her husband, who eventually learns to accept that he will not be able to see his Susie grow up. Each morning Mr. Salmon felt, “the hand of God pressing down on him” but for the sake of his family, he concealed his grief and kept it suppressed underneath a mask. Abigail, however, could not handle the incessant pressure weighing down on her. She isolated herself from Lindsay and Buckley when they needed her the most. Mrs. Salmon had gone from a busy housewife who worried about what to make for dinner, to a stranger who could not bear the sight of her own children without being reminded of Susie. She no longer associated herself as a mother; in fact, she became a stranger to her own family and learned to “despise the word” (62) mama. While the rest of the Salmons pulled together to help ease their collective pain, Abigail sought an escape and took leave by moving out to California. Filled with anger, despair, and angst, she slowly isolated herself from her family. When news came of Mr. Salmon’s heart attack, the first thought that entered her mind when she saw her husband lying helplessly on the bed was, “…she didn’t know what she was supposed to do anymore. How long would she have to wait, what would have to happen, before she could leave again?” (275) Abigail was no longer connected to the world she used to know. Sebold continuously reinforces the fact on how Mrs. Salmon became an outsider and how awkward she felt around her family.

Similar stories to the Salmon family are seen each week on the news or in the newspapers. Tragedy ripping apart families has become an all too common occurrence, which provides believability to The Lovely Bones. We see the emotions and situations described in the novel and can unfortunately relate to the Salmon family with ease. Essentially, Abigail represents the human trait of running away when things get tough. Part of the essence of being a human being is having faults; however, the object of life is to be able to cover them up as well as possible. Abigail’s weakness is exposed and she cannot bare the pain associated with it, which not only hurts herself but also her family. (561)

Introductions

Dear Mr. Coon,

Pleasure reading is one thing that I do not devote enough time to. During the school year, I will read all of the required novels; however, between soccer, which takes up most of my free time out of school and homework assignments, I have very little time left over to read the novels which interest me most. I love reading mystery and adventure novels. Harry Potter is definitely one of my favorite series. I have read all of the books multiple times and just cannot get enough of them. With that said, I would not be able to explain to you how disheartened I was when I finished the seventh and final piece of the Harry Potter dynasty, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, this past summer. One of my favorite mystery novels would be The Dante Club, which was my ID book that I read for Mr. Martin. I loved the fact that Matthew Pearl, the author, kept me on my toes and continuously threw curve balls my way with new twists around every corner. Personally, I feel as though my reading habits have changed dramatically through the years. Whereas in the fifth grade and the sixth grade I may have read books just for the sake of getting through to the end, I now enjoy them more and actually think about the characters and their point of views. Several books that I have enjoyed have been made into movies, and it is always interesting to see how different my initial images of the story are from those chosen by the movie producers.

Besides essays and writing prompts that are assigned at school, I do not typically write on my own. My mom always tried to get me to write about my everyday life and feelings in a diary, but I never got hooked onto that idea. I looked at it more as a chore that I was required to do, rather than something that I could use as a release for everything that was going on in my life. Being heavily involved in soccer, I use sports as an outlet rather than writing; however, that is not to say that I greatly dislike writing. I have taken great pride in a number of my research papers. As I have progressed throughout PCDS I have grown greatly as a writer, particularly between freshman year and the present. I recently wrote a piece for the Scottsdale Rotary, Youth Salute to leadership on leadership, and I think that it was one my best pieces of work. One of my strengths as a writer is my ability to conduct thorough research. One thing I could work more on is strengthening my vocabulary. I hope this year I will be able to not only find the time for more pleasure reading, but also grow as a writer. (473)

Sincerely,
Michele