All The Bright Places

The author, Jennifer Niven, relates in an epilogue that her great-grandfather died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound long before her birth. It is unclear whether this act was intentional or accidental; Niven’s family never discussed it, yet the death has affected them for generations. Similarly, the author discovered the body of boy she “knew and loved” who had committed suicide (381). These experiences equipped her to create nuanced characters with complex emotional reactions to the deaths of loved ones, in particular the guilt that often follows death.

Violet Markey survives an auto accident on an icy bridge that she had urged her sister to drive over as they traveled home from a party. Her sister, Eleanor, died in the crash. Violet, who considered Eleanor her best friend, experiences reactions ranging from grief to rage over this loss. A prototypical all-American cheerleader prior to this event, Violet retreats from her previous activities, friends, and hobbies. She is unable to focus, and so her passion for writing and her ability to complete school assignments suffer. She expresses her grief by imitating Eleanor’s hairstyle and wearing her glasses, although neither flatter her. Violet is isolated and overwhelmed to such an extent that she considers suicide herself. Ironically, Finch, who ultimately does kill himself, saves her. Her paralysis is caused in part by her family’s inability to reminisce about Eleanor or to share their sadness at her departure. The hopes and dreams her parents held for her late sister fall on Violet. These couple with their already existing expectations for Violet’s future, and the weight wears on her. While Eleanor undergoes a physical demise, the life that Violet knew prior to this tragedy has died as well. The Markey parents, while mourning Eleanor’s loss, try to propel Violet back into the world by encouraging her to engage socially and drive a car again. The concept of their bravery is noteworthy: they deliberately encourage Violet to return to the activity that killed Eleanor.

There is a clear disparity in the reactions of others to the deaths of Eleanor and Finch. Violet is the recipient of condolences from teachers and classmates nearly a year after her sister’s death. Conversely, Finch’s death is acknowledged and mourned, in some cases quite falsely, by family members and classmates; however, others suspect the possibility of suicide, but this is never confirmed publicly by his parents. Their reasoning is that no suicide note was found; therefore, Finch’s demise was accidental. This theory is predicated upon the conventions of another era. Finch writes emails and texts to his mother, sisters, Violet, and closest friends that are the clear equivalent of the hard copy suicide notes of earlier generations. His parents fear the stigma associated with suicide that prevailed during their own youth, and the same holds true for their fear of admitting the boy was in need of psychiatric intervention. Magical thinking and denial are powerful coping devices and surely less painful than admitting that different approaches might have prevented this loss. 

Violet Markey is a survivor of an unexpected, tragic loss as well as that of a suicide. She is in love with Finch but angry with him. She wonders why their relationship was an inadequate incentive for him to live; she feels guilt about being unable to save him; and she sees him everywhere she goes. Mr. Embry, the school counselor who worked with both Finch and Violet, shares this sense of guilt at having been unsuccessful in saving him, but he reminds Violet that her emotional survival is contingent upon accepting the tragedy and the fact that her life is now changed forever.