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The Theme of Inevitable Death - Coggle Diagram
The Theme of Inevitable Death
Omission of Preparedness
Will's apparent fear of death
When Mikey puts the gun to Will's head, Will is completely terrified. He breaks down afterwards, and Mikey seems satisfied with the point he got across (that Will is not ready to face the concept of death).
Whenever someone in the elevator talks about them killing another person, Will seems to be shocked and nervous with the conversation.
"My mouth dried out, words phlegm trapped in my throat, like an allergic reaction to the thought of it all" (Reynolds 179). Will can't say that he is going to kill someone else.
Will being uncertain/not having enough evidence against Riggs
Will keeps repeating "has to be" when referring to Riggs being Shawn's killer. Does he really believe so if he has to keep repeating it?
"Told him I knew it was Riggs. Told him I thought it was Riggs, then told him I knew it was Riggs again" (Reynolds 294).
The only evidence Will possesses against Riggs is that he became a Dark Son and might want to start acting tougher.
Will being unsure of who to listen to and what rules to follow
At the end of the novel, Will is left unsure if he should listen to his loved one's doubts and if he should continue to try and follow The Rules.
At the beginning of the novel, Will is fully prepared to kill Riggs and follow The Rules.
"The rules are the rules Right? Right? Right? . . .
Shawn
(Reynolds 296)?
Chain Reactions
Buck, Frick, and Shawn's deaths
Buck gets killed by Frick as a result of Frick attempting to get into the Dark Suns (and shooting Buck because he gets scared).
Frick gets killed by Shawn as revenge for Buck.
Shawn gets killed for killing Frick.
All of the deaths from Will's loved ones relating to The Rules
The deaths of Will's loved ones are multiple chain reactions.
The Rules are driving people to kill each other (for revenge). People that play by The Rules would face a quicker death.
Uncle Mark and Mikey's deaths
Mikey dies trying to get revenge for Uncle Mark.
Uncle Mark dies from fighting someone that stole his corner.
Hidden Messages Within the Words of Will's Loved Ones
Will's friends and family being skeptical about his plan to kill Riggs
Will's loved ones appear skeptical of his plan to kill Riggs because they do not think that he can go through with it. They could also be doubting him to try and save him from death (by revenge from someone else).
"Then Dani asked,
What if you miss
" (Reynolds 142)?
"
You don't got it in you
, he [Buck] repeated over and over again . . ." (Reynolds 106).
Shawn breaking the first rule in front of Will
Shawn starts crying in front of Will. This breaks the first rule. This shows Will that it is all right to break the rules and that he does not have to face a potential death (from revenge).
"I looked back at Shawn, tears now pouring
from his eyes as he softly snotted and
hiccuped like a little kid . . ." (Reynolds 298).
Shawn's final words to Will
"
You coming
" (Reynolds 306)?
Shawn's message could be interpreted as him asking Will if he is going to follow his loved ones in death by continuing to play by the rules.
The Rules
Will feeling as though he needs to conform to The Rules
Since all of his loved ones followed The Rules, Will believes that he should conform to them too. This is what is driving him to go after Shawn's killer.
The Rules relating to inevitable death
Based on the events of everyone in the past, it is evident that The Rules can be dangerous and fatal.
If everyone keeps getting revenge on one another, everyone involved will face an inevitable death.
The three rules
"No. 2 snitching. Don't. No matter what. Don't" (Reynolds 32).
"No. 1 crying. Don't. No matter what. Don't" (Reynolds 31).
"No. 3 revenge. If someone you love gets killed, find the person who killed them and kill them" (Reynolds 33).