The Virgin Suicides

by

Jeffrey Eugenides

Elm Trees and the Lisbon House

The Virgin Suicides tracks the deterioration of a suburban neighborhood’s elm trees as a way of symbolically illustrating an overall sense of decline. The elm trees in the boys’ neighborhood are large and impressive…

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The Virgin Mary Cards

Cecilia’s laminated Virgin Mary cards, which her sisters later hide around the neighborhood, symbolize the mystery and uncertainty surrounding the Lisbon suicides. The cards themselves are like a puzzle piece that the neighborhood boys

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