12.1 There is a lot of juxtaposition used by Alice Sebold to tell this story. She moves between the date of the protagonist’s (Susie Salmon) murder, 1973, to present time on Earth (post-murder), to moments in her life before the murder took place, to present time in Heaven. The author’s choice to allow the main character the ability to observe, unseen, actions of other characters from a distance that are currently happening (and actions that have already happened) is a unique gift. It provides Susie with an ability to critically reflect on important life concepts such as love, morality, violence, death, family, and time to name a few. She is both near and far from the actions of the other people that she observes and loves and it gives her a unique perspective of the human condition that we are privy to.
There is a lot of juxtaposition used by Alice Sebold to tell this story. She moves between the date of the protagonist’s (Susie Salmon) murder, 1973, to present time on Earth (post-murder), to moments in her life before the murder took place, to present time in Heaven. The author’s choice to allow the main character the ability to observe, unseen, actions of other characters from a distance that are currently happening (and actions that have already happened) is a unique gift. It provides Susie with an ability to critically reflect on important life concepts such as love, morality, violence, death, family, and time to name a few. She is both near and far from the actions of the other people that she observes and loves and it gives her a unique perspective of the human condition that we are privy to.