Virgin Suicides pg 123

"They could sense Mrs. Lisborn watching them, and even though they were close enough to feel the Lisborn girls' breath and to smell the first perfume they had ever been allowed to wear, the boys tries not to stick the girls or even to touch them. They gently lifted the material from the girls' chests and hung white Flowers over their hearts. Whichever Lisborn girl a boy pinned became his date. When they finished, they said good night to Mrs. Lisborn and led the girls outside to the Cadillac, holding the empty corsage over the girls heads to protect their hair from the drizzle."


The author uses the appeal of the senses to the reader. Everyone knows that someone shouldn't be able to feel someone watching them, we all know too well that familiar feeling. It gives the reader something to connect with. The diction used when describing the girls is very soft and sweet. Everyone wants to take care of them, they are still being treated as angelic in a way. After everything they have already been through this just adds to their treatment. An example of this is the last sentence when the boys hold the containers to protect their hair. They don't want anything to ever ruin them. Another thing that the author used is the symbols that he has created. The guys gently move the material from the girls chests to put on the white flowers. White represents life and hope and the heart is located at the chest. Also white flowers are normally used at funerals to show hope the ones that have just left us. This could be a foreshadow as to that the girls hearts will stop working and they will have those types of flowers all around them. In short; they will die. The author also does a great job with characterizing the girls. Since the boys don't really know what girl they want to choose, the reader can infer that they all act quite similar to each other. Besides Lux, they all seem to act the same. They are the only ones that truly understand each other and that characterizes them as quiet and also a little weird. This is why no one understands why they killed themselves except for themselves.

Virgin Suicides pg 61

" As he did, however, the ghost turned, and he saw that it was only Bonnie, wrapped in a bedsheet. "Dont worry," she said, quietly. "They took the fence out."

I feel that the way he described her and the way he thought of her as a ghost was foreshadowing what she will become. I think it showed that she will kill herself and become a ghost just like Cecilia did. I also think it characterizes Bonnie because she is described as being wrapped in a bedsheet. When I heard that I thought of a kid dressed up for halloween in a white sheet. I think that shows how immature they all are because they dont seem to be morning over this death at all, or they are all doing it in a weird way. Overall I think that these lines have a very strong meaning behind them because they show the foreshadowing that Bonnie will eventually kill herslef, maybe not in the same fashion as Cecilia, but she will die and become a ghost.

Virgin suicides pg 39

"Only the family filed past the coffin. First the girls walked past, each dazed and expressionless, and, later, people said we should have known by their faces. It was like they were giving her a wink." pg 39

The author uses alliteration in the first sentence to connect the family to the coffin. He could have used the word but instead he used file to connect them to a different type of movement past the coffin. The diction in this sounds very insightful and he seems to know everything about them. It gives you a better understanding of what is happening and you actually feel like you were there. It is very bluntly foreshadowing that the other girls will die within the corse of this story.

Thw virgin suicides

"Tt was thrilling to know that the lisborn girls knew our names, that their delicate vocal cords had pronounced their syllables, and that they meant something in their lives." pg 24

This quote uses soft diction to describe these girls. It creates a tone of almost they are untouchable. You can imagine them as almost angels of some sort with the soft diction or even royalty that these boys are so lucky to meet them. In the book this quote helps to characterize these girls as outsiders. Nobody really knew them except for their family. They were untouchable because no one knew them. They were angels that can only be seen but never touched or talked to. It also creates irony because why would an angel want to kill itself?

Dracula Pg 185

"And you are right. There will be pain for us all;but it will not be all pain, not will this pain be the last. We and you too- you most of all, my dear boy-will have to pass through the bitter water before we reach the sweet. But we must be brave of heart and unselfish, and do our duty, and all will be well!"

In this the author uses contradiction going back and forth between how much pain this will cause. It confuses the reader into not know what to truly think about the situation. Also he uses repetition of the word pain to emphasize how all these men are feeling about what they have just done (killing Lucy's undead body.) The syntax of this paragraph breaks everything up. It makes you stop in awkward places so that you can analyze and understand what he is truly trying to tell you. Also he uses a metaphor. water can't be bitter, but he is using it to say that you have to go through the bad times before you can get to the good times. Also using this diction such as bitter and sweet gives two opposites which can represent good and evil; what they are up against.

Dracula pg 87

"The wind roared like thunder, and blew with such force that it was with difficulty that even strong men kept their feet, or clung with grim clasp to the iron stanchions."


"The wind roared like thunder" is a simile. This also reflects that spooky and dark mood of the story. It helps to create that effect and also relate it to a sound that we can relate to. Also the wind is a symbol for what is to come almost like Nature is in Frankenstein. It foreshadows what happens next. As the wind is getting rougher in this scene you can tell that the next few scenes will not be the happiest. Things will begin to go wrong as the wind gets rougher. Also the imagery used to show how rough the wind was. You can see the men holding on for dear life to understand the conditions that they were in. This also helps to add to the hopeless mood of the story.




I didnt know if there was a blog this vacation....and if there was I totally forgot about it so I'm making it up even if it doesnt count I still wanted to do it. :)