SYMBOLISM / MOTIFS / METAPHORS / IMAGERY / SYMBOLS

A fourth motif involves fire. It seems as if fire follows the Walls wherever they go and is a destructive and cleansing element at the same time.

Some examples include:

1. Jeannette's earliest memory concerns the time she set herself on fire cooking hotdogs.

2. Jeannette tells the reader that she doesn't fear fire. Instead, she becomes fascinated with it. Her Dad shows her how to pass her hand through a candle flame without getting burned. She does it over and over and then begins running to watch while the neighbors burn their trash. Dad tells the astonished neighbor who thinks Jeannette would want to run from fire..........

...........

11. The scar from the fire when she was three means that she is stronger than whatever it was that had tried to hurt her.

The complete study guide is currently available as a downloadable PDF, RTF, or MS Word DOC file from the PinkMonkey MonkeyNotes download store. The complete study guide contains summaries and notes for all of the chapters; detailed analysis of the themes, plot structure, and characters; important quotations and analysis; detailed analysis of symbolism, motifs, and imagery; a key facts summary; detailed analysis of the use of foreshadowing and irony; a multiple-choice quiz, and suggested book report ideas and essay topics.