Loss of Innocence
...e before bed checks to climb onto her roof and engage in sexual acts with random neighbours. These acts do not last too long, though, since she has to be back in bed. Similarly at McLean there are bed checks every fifteen minutes to ensure that each patient is safely in her room. When a visitor comes to see Susanna, she takes them into her room and attempts to have sex in the course of fifteen minutes. In this situation the characters present comparable actions as a result of the longing for attention. Vulgarity is another imperative issue. Lux begins her vulgar stage after the death of her sister. She becomes friends with the infamous Trip Fontaine who leads her to become involved with drugs. She constantly arrives home from school intoxicated from smoking marijuana with Trip. Susanna witnesses drug intakes as well. Daisy and Lisa take many medications at once and mix them. They are reliant on these drugs and their behaviour changes if they do not receive any on a particular day. Another aspect of vulgarity is the exploitation of alcohol. The Lisbon sisters are allowed to go to a school dance one night with Trip Fontaine and his friends. At this dance, he lures Lux and Bonnie under the bleachers and presents them with Peach Schnapps. The girls become intoxicated by only a little bit of the drink since they have not been exposed to alcohol prior to the event. The vocabulary of Susanna and Lux are similar as well; they both use profanity. “She was always saying, ‘Fuck this school’.” (Eugenides, 102) Having grown up in a strict Catholic lifestyle, it was peculiar that Lux Lisbon began swearing so frequently. “I spent hours in my butterfly chair banging my wrist. I did it in the evenings, like homework, then I’d spend a half hour wrist banging, then I’d finish my homework, then back to the chair for some more banging before brushing my teeth and going to bed.” (Kaysen, 153) Susanna proves to be physically vulgar when she begins her wrist-banging habit. The female characters in both of the novels are involved in promiscuous acts and vulgarity which further enhance the aspect of loss of innocence. Susanna is never exposed to such situations prior to her admittance to McLean. Furthermore, Lux Lisbon is raised to be a religious, well-behaved girl, though her rebellion against her extremely strict parents forces her innocence to be deficient The characters in both novels fall victim to marginalization in society. Their lives lead them to become isolated and neglected. As Cecilia Lisbon recuperates after her fist suicide attempt, the doctor questions why she tried to kill herself: “Obviously Doctor, you have never been a thirteen-year old girl.” (Eugenides, 7) The doctor is shocked when she says this because at the time every child enjoyed life. The Lisbon sisters do not fall into that category, their life was far more secluded. None of the Lisbon girls were permitted to wear make-up which was something that almost every girl did. The girls were forced to wear long, hideous dresses that were completely modest. There was no evidence of cleavage and not an inch of leg shown. Soon after Cecilia’s death the girls were all taken out of their schools and were compelled to stay at home. Although the girls wanted to stay in school, they could not object to their parents’ demands. Eventually society begins to forget their existence. At home they are prisoners and outside they are lepers. The girls rarely made an appearance out of their home though, when they did, they were shunned by most of the town. We never learn enough about Mr. and Mrs. Lisbon to be able to assess their strange ways of bringing up their daughters. However, at no point do the parents seem to be evil. Rather, they are frightened, afraid that something terrible might happen to their girls. As the girls are locked up by their parents inside their small world and are never allowed to have dates, the girls gather their knowledge from TV; if allowed that. (www.sciencedaily.com) Coincidently, Susanna is secluded from society as well. Trapped behind McLean’s walls, she is distanced from the rest of civilization. “In a strange way we were free. We’d reached the end of the line. We had nothing more to lose. Our privacy, our dignity, our liberty; all of these were gone. We were stripped down to the bare bones of ourselves.” (Kaysen, 94) Many of the girls at the institution are not keen on taking baths. The reason behind this is that in order to take a bath they had to be under the supervision of one of the nurses at all times. Even when they want to shave a nurse has to be watching in case any of the girls attempt to harm themselves. Thus, they no longer had their privacy. If the girls behave themselves, they are allowed to go on a “luxurious” walk to the ice cream store. This is definitely an indulgence for the girls because they are not used to such liberties. Being secluded from society is a setback for all of the characters because once they are placed back into the general public they are unable to comprehend the common aspects of life. They live within a safeguard, whether it is a mental institution or their own home, which makes them incapable of obtaining any common sense. Mental disorders are the underlying issue that prevails throughout both novels. The Virgin Suicides and Girl, Interrupted involve characters who develop illnesses. The individuals begin their disorders with symptoms which are very alike. Cecilia and Lux Lisbon as well as Susanna and Cynthia suffer from low self esteem. Cecilia’s lack of confidence eventually persuades her to commit suicide. Lux’s self esteem issue occurs because of her isolation from society. She feels as though she is completely different from everyone therefore, in order to fit in and be noticed she decides to become promiscuous. Cynthia is self conscience about herself because she has a large scar on her face from a fire. This specific incident takes a toll on her life therefore making her an outcast. Susanna’s promiscuity arises as she begins to feel self consci...