The Lovely Bones Character Traits

The Lovely Bones, written by Alice Sebold, is narrated by the main character, Susie Salmon.This adds a sense of perspective to the story as each event is read from Susie’s point of view. When Susie is murdered, each of the other characters in the novel evolve to accept the death. Susie, who is in her heaven, does not develop new characteristics beyond those she already possesses. Susie’s father, Jack Salmon, faces many difficulties throughout the novel. With each challenge, Jack attains new characteristics.
At the beginning of the novel, Jack has three healthy children and a loving wife. Because of this, he has great pride and happiness with his family. Jack’s pride is displayed through his willingness tell “embarrassing anecdotes he saw merely

as loving testaments” (Sebold 7). Whenever somebody mentions Susie’s exciting spirits, Jack does not hesitate to say “‘spunk!’... ‘Let me tell you about spunk,’” and tell an “embarrassing anecdote” about Susie (7). Jack’s ready storytelling displays pride in his family because he tries to share all he can about the people he loves with anyone who will listen, no matter the story.
Soon after Susie’s disappearance, Jack becomes skeptical. When the police tell him “‘they found a body part. It might be Susie’s’”, Jack refuses to believe the police, clinging to Len Fenerman’s words, “‘nothing is ever certain’” (22). Jack’s skepticism is further evidenced by his constant retorts of “‘but it could be anyone’s’” (25) and “‘ but there is no body’” (28), when the police find evidence of Susie’s murder. Even as the police find clear evidence of Susie’s death, such as her elbow and blood in the cornfield, Jack finds a way to push the truth away, covering it with denial.
When Jack comes to the eventual realization that Susie is dead, he becomes enraged. He is angry with any memory of his daughter. While in his study, he sees a ship in a bottle that he and Susie had made. Immediately,
he turned and saw all the others, all the years they marked and the hands that had held them. His dead father’s, his dead child’s…. He smashed the rest [of the bottles]. He christened the walls and wooden chair with the news of my [Susie’s] death (46).

Jack’s anger is displayed through his attempt to get rid of any memories of his dead daughter. By smashing the bottles in his study, he clearly demonstrates his anger through his violent actions. Even though the glass is sharp and can hurt him, Jack’s rage takes over, destroying each and every bottle ship, along with memories of Susie.
As Jack continues to live with the grief of his dead daughter, he turns his anger into suspicion.

He is wary of anyone who could have killed his daughter. This is demonstrated through Jack’s concern about his neighbor, George Harvey. Jack becomes quizzical about Mr. Harvey and when Jack tells him “‘you know something’”, Mr. Harvey responds with “‘go home. I can’t help you’” (57). This furthers Jack’s skepticism because when he talks Mr. Harvey about Susie, Mr. Harvey, he is quick to avoid Jack’s statement, telling him to “‘go home’” (57). This furthers suspicions because Mr. Harvey’s avoidance of the topic is an indicator that Jack’s suspicions are correct, Mr. Harvey does know something about Susie’s

death.
Over time, Jack begins to feel guilty. Susie notices from heaven that
Every day he got up. Before sleep wore off, he was who he used to be. Then, as his consciousness woke, it was as if poison seeped in. At first he couldn’t even get up. He lay there under a heavy weight. But then only movement could save him, and he moved and he moved and he moved, no movement being enough to make up for it. The guilt on him, the hand of God pressing down on him, saying, You were not there when your daughter needed you (58).

Jack feels guilty because he feels as if he may have been able to save Susie’s life, but he did not attempt to. Instead of trying to find Susie when she fails to return home for dinner, Jack and his family simply assume that she is staying late at school and continue on with their dinner. Jack ignores that his daughter could need help, only to find out that she is dead.
The next phase Jack goes through is determination. Jack becomes determined to find Susie’s murderer, even though the police tell him to stop calling because they believe he is wrong. When he sees the beam of a flashlight in the cornfield, Jack is immediately determined to find out who is out there because Susie was murdered in the same cornfield. Jack
dressed quickly from the storage closet in his study, putting on a hunting jacket that he hadn’t had on since an ill-fated hunting trip ten years earlier. Downstairs he went into the front hall closet and found the baseball bat (137).

Jack is willing to go out into the cornfield where his daughter was murdered, armed with only a baseball bat.
After Jack’s spur of determination in the cornfield, he becomes depressed. Not only is his daughter dead, his wife has disappeared and he cannot walk because his knee is fractured during the incident in the cornfield. Further, Mr. Harvey has disappeared and
a family with five little girls had moved into Mr. Harvey’s house. Laughter traveled into my father’s study… The cruelty of it became like glass shattering in my father’s ears…. He would shut the windows in his den on even the hottest evenings to avoid the sound (216).

Jack cannot bear hearing happy young girls because they remind him of his deceased daughter, Susie. Jack is extremely upset about the mystery around Susie’s death. The young girls voices and sounds trigger memories of his recently deceased daughter. He sinks further into depression, staying in the house to avoid anything that might serve as a reminder of Susie. Jack’s extended stay indoors displays his lugubriosity as he feels as if he cannot exit the house because of the loss of his daughter and the painful memories that will return if he leaves.
In the end, Jack becomes truly happy in remembering Susie. This is demonstrated by Abigail, his wife’s, return and his final acceptance of Susie’s death. When Abigail returns from her sudden expedition, she visits Jack, who is in the hospital because he has a heart attack. Abigail brings Jack daffodils and when she shows them to him,
‘Daffodils,’ he said. ‘It’s Susie’s flower.’ My father [Jack] smiled beautifully. ‘See,’ he said, ‘that’s how. You live in the face of it [Susie’s death] by giving her a flower.’ ‘That’s so sad,’ my mother [Abigail] said. ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘it is’ (280).

Even though the daffodils Abigail brings him are a sad vestige, Jack is able to accept that Susie is dead and is happy with remembering her.

This allows him to realize that the daffodils do not have to trigger sad memories, instead a symbol of the good things in Susie’s life. This realization makes Jack happy because he not only has his wife back, but can recall happy times with Susie. In Jack’s awakening of happiness, even with a dead daughter, Jack
dreamed that one day he might teach another child to love ships in bottles. He knew there would be both sadness and joy in it; that is would always hold an echo of me [Susie] (324).

Similar to the daffodils being a symbol of good times, ships in bottles become symbols of something Jack enjoyed to make with Susie when she was alive. Earlier in the novel, Jack could not cope with the memories that go alongside the ships in bottles, so he smashes them. As he accepts that Susie’s death, the ships in bottles represent acceptance, and become a dream of what the future could hold. Jack wants to teach his grandchildren to build them, just as he taught Susie. Jack becomes happy as he realizes that he must not dwell on the

past.
The message Jack Salmon adds to the novel The Lovely Bones is that one must not dwell on the past, but turn the sad memories into peaceful reminders. When Susie is murdered, he cannot move past the fact that she is gone. He constantly tries to prove that George Harvey is Susie’s murderer, never giving up, never getting past the fact that Susie is dead. He clings to Len Fenerman’s words, “‘nothing is ever certain’” (22). Eventually, Jack comes to accept Susie’s death and finds happiness in remembering her through small things such as daffodils and ships in bottles. He is able to move beyond painful memories and instead focus on happy possibilities in the future.