Throughout this entire book there have been many symbols. Some not as important as the others but they still sent out an important message about the characters, setting etc.
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| The crucifix. |
The first symbol is of Lux's Bra on the Crucifix. Lux's bra was found by Peter Sissen, who ended up stealing it. The bra represents the womanhood of Lux. Between the transition from adolescence to adulthood all of the girls are caught in between their innocence and their potential of becoming a woman. To the parents the girls were young innocent girls but for them they were women who were branching off to find their own identity. Lux's bra on the crucifix symbolizes Lux's sexual rebellion against Mr. and Mrs. Lisbon's strict Catholic rules and the family dynamics, which is most evidently shown by her habit of having sex on the roof with anonymous men everyday. Most importantly however, Lux's bra represents fertility and sexuality, meanwhile the crucifix represents sacrifice and death and they combine together to represent the sexual tension in chapter four. The most significant scene to demonstrate this is when Lux had sex with Trip Fontaine. That night by losing her virginity to him her innocence, her old self died and she was reborn as a woman. That was most evidently proven by Lux having sex reportedly afterwards with many men. , Lux's bra draped over Cecilia's crucifix can also symbolize the differences between the two sisters; Cecilia and Lux. Cecilia was shy, innocent, kept to herself kind of girl and Lux was bold, sexy, mischievous and rebellious.
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| Cecilia Lisbon with her 1920 vintage wedding dress. |
The second symbol is Cecilia's wedding dress. When I first read about her wedding dress I thought what is the big deal about it but then I thought if it wasn't a big deal then the author would not have described it with so much detail. Cecilia's 1920 dress is actually a representation of herself in a way. The dress is not very fitting and is out of place with other dresses at the time just like Cecilia it self. Cecilia is not very fitting with the other sisters it seems and is out of place at school and even socially. That was most evident when the Lisbon sisters had a party and all the other sisters seemed to blend in expect for Cecilia who obviously committed suicide that night. The vintage dress and her old taste in classic music represent her taste in old, vintage things. The dress is white or cream colored, which represents pure and virginal. Cecilia is exactly that. She is pure and she died a virgin. The wedding dress is obviously a very mature look for Cecilia, which could represent her desire to become more mature and take on new roles.
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| Lux Lisbon |
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