The Lovely Bones 

by Alice Sebold

New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2002. 328.

Question:

Why is the title The Lovely Bones symbolic of Susie and her story?

        The title of a piece of literature most often is symbolic of an element in the story, sets the tone of the story and provides a general idea of the story’s plot. In the novel The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, the “lovely bones” are Susie Salmon’s bones that were buried in the backyard of her neighbour, Mr. Harvey, after she was violently raped and decapitated at the age of fourteen. Although the words “lovely” and “bones” are somewhat contrasting, they are a perfect representation of the young adolescent and the events that she has experienced in this novel. This title is symbolic of Susie’s qualities, Susie’s state throughout the story, and the resolution of the story.

        In my opinion, the title The Lovely Bones can be seen as a synecdoche, a figure of speech in which a part is used for a whole or a whole for a part. In this case, Susie’s bones were used to describe her personality as a whole. Susie was a kind, loving and good person. Furthermore, Susie was innocent before she was raped and murdered, in the sense that she was not exposed to such harmful and awful events in her past. I believe that this title emphasizes that these bones belonged to a good and innocent person.

        The title of this novel gives the reader a clear idea of Susie’s condition throughout the story. These bones represent the disunity between Susie’s soul and her physical self as bones are merely a fragment of a whole. Susie is incomplete once she is killed since she is missing her body – she is only a spirit. The title The Lovely Bones illustrates an act of death, decapitation and separation, which therefore leads the reader to understand that Susie is not physically complete in the novel.

        This title is symbolic of the novel’s ending. Susie’s bones are what uncover Mr. Harvey’s many sins and murders. They exposed Mr. Harvey’s secrets to Susie’s family and the police. The bones therefore brought Mr. Harvey to justice. A weight was lifted off Susie and her family, and they felt like they could then move on from the tragedy. The discovery of Susie’s bones, in a way, created for the family a lovely way to say goodbye and accept their family member’s death. The title The Lovely Bones gives a positive tone to something negative, which is reflected in the ending of the novel. Susie and her family’s consciences were all cleared once the mystery of Susie’s death was solved.

        In conclusion, the title The Lovely Bones captures many important elements of the story: the main character’s personality, her situation throughout the book, and the ending of the story. This title enables the reader to understand aspects of the story from only the front cover.