71 pages • 2 hours read
All The Bright Places
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Chapters 1-3Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 1 Summary: “Finch”
The book opens with one of the two narrators, Theodore Finch, reflecting upon the numerous occasions and circumstances when he has asked himself, “Is today a good day to die?” (3). He is standing on the narrow ledge of a bell tower on the grounds of his high school, feeling “deader than usual” (4), and has no memory of the several preceding weeks. He shouts an invitation to students milling below to witness his death, but he attracts no attention.
Finch suddenly realizes that another student, the beautiful, popular Violet Markey, is also poised to leap from another section of the precipice. He calms her by instructing her to climb back over the railing to safety. He uses macabre humor, noting that he does not want it to appear that “I’ve been run through the wood chipper at my funeral” and makes his way toward her (7). Finch also shouts to the crowd that Violet’s purpose for climbing the tower was to save him from suicide. After assuring her safety, Finch considers leaping from the height again; however, Violet reciprocates by talking to him until he relents. Charlie Donahue, Finch’s best friend, who casually mentions that pizza is being served in the cafeteria, joins them.
Subsequently, Finch meets with his school counselor, Mr. Embry (aka “Mr. Embryo”), who questions whether he is suicidal, threatens to call Finch’s mother, and plans twice-weekly meetings. Finch does not voice his recent thoughts of a “long, dark sleep where you don’t dream at all” juxtaposed with the thought that he wants to stay alive (16).
Chapter 2 Summary: “Violet”
Violet meets with her school counselor, Mrs. Marion Kresney, who asks whether she is sleeping well. Violet has had a series of disturbing dreams, including one in which she was “literally melting away” (19). The counselor makes queries about progress on college applications, noting that the NYU application has not been completed; Violet has stopped maintaining the website that she and her sister, Eleanor, had started. She ruminates about Eleanor’s death in a car accident. While not admitting as much to her counselor, Violet feels that she is worthy of punishment as a result, and has given herself very amateurish bangs as a memorial to her late sister. Additionally, Violet refuses to continue her former passion of writing; she will not drive a car, and nor will she be a passenger.
Violet has started to wear her late sister’s eyeglasses, even though they contain the wrong prescription, because she feels that “if I wear the glasses long enough, I can be like her” (23). Previously an exemplary student, Violet advises her Russian literature teacher that she cannot write a lengthy paper by the due date; the teacher sighs and merely asks that Violet submit some form of writing rather than the proposed ten-page term paper. Finally, her peers and her former boyfriend, Ryan, congratulate Violet for having saved Finch’s life on the bell tower that morning, and Violet does not correct their misperception.
Chapter 3 Summary: “Finch”
Finch’s narrative appears to be swinging toward mania, and he enters class feeling “strangely exhilarated” (27). Mr. Black, the geography teacher, lectures about Hoosier Hill, one of the geographical wonders of Indiana. Due to his overexcited mental state, Finch suggests a field trip to the locale.
Violet is late for the class and embarrasses herself by dropping her books noisily, causing laughter throughout the class. In a show of solidarity, Finch intentionally scatters his books all over the room, and he exchanges a sympathetic smile with Violet. The young man requests to be partnered with her in an oral presentation assignment, but Violet requests an alternative assignment in view of her recent trauma. Mr. Black responds, “It is time to get…back on the camel” (31), insisting that she participate in the project.
In a short scenario in this chapter, Gabe Romero, along with Amanda Monk and some other popular students, taunts Finch. Romero pushes Finch’s books from his arms and calls him “faggot.” However, Finch refrains from fighting in order to avoid detention and possible suspension from school. Subsequently, Finch happens to see Violet in a crowd and realizes that he is “falling hard” for the young woman.
Finch narrates a scene in his family home, which involves his mother “talking on the phone and defrosting one of the casseroles my sister Kate prepares at the start of each week” (35). He notes that Kate is one year his senior, while Decca, age eight, “was a mistake,” and yet Finch feels it’s obvious that “if anyone is the mistake here, it’s me” (35). Finch goes to his room, where he makes an entry regarding the incident at the school bell tower in a journal clearly devoted to a documentation of his suicidal thoughts. During a subsequent Facebook search for Violet, he finds a news article describing the death of her older sister, Eleanor, when she lost control of a car that she was driving. Violet, her only passenger, survived the crash. Moved by compassion, Finch establishes a Facebook account and sends Violet a friend request, which she accepts.
The reader learns that Finch’s father had divorced his mother the preceding year and was involved with a younger woman. Finch’s mother, depressed and distracted, attempts to interact with her son and younger daughter over dinner; however, she is clearly ineffective and, despite her best efforts, is unable to understand Finch’s “sadness.”
In an email exchange with Violet, Finch convinces her to accompany him on a series of field trips across Indiana, using a map rather than an electronic device for guidance. He opines that “maybe even the smallest places mean something” (41). He plays his guitar and sings lyrics about having refrained from suicide today because Violet smiled at him (42).
Chapters 1-3 Analysis
The concepts of mental illness and suicidal ideation are raised immediately in the book. Theodore Finch, one of the teenage narrators, is portrayed as standing on the ledge of a tower on the high school grounds as he contemplates suicide. He describes the anguish of what appears to be bipolar disorder and the pain of “blanking out and waking up” (4). Later in the narrative, Finch notes some of the triggers for his impulses, “like the thirteen fourth graders killed earlier this week when some SOB opened fire in their school gym, or the girl […] who died of cancer, or the man I saw […] kicking his dog, or my father” (12). In contrast, a later chapter involves Finch’s manic sensations during U.S. geography class, when he describes “feeling infamous and invincible and twitchy and strangely exhilarated” (27).
The text also explores Violet’s trauma in the wake of her sister’s death. In an effort to overcome her survivor’s guilt, Violent begins to adopt aspects of her sister’s persona. She has cut her hair in unflattering bangs in an effort to resemble Eleanor, and she wears her sister’s oversized eyeglasses, although the prescription is not hers, so that she can “be like her” (23). Violet’s grades also begin to slip, and she loses interest in the things that were once important to her.
The text suggests that altruism is capable of superseding suicidal depression, as Finch’s initial plan to jump from the tower is dismissed when he realizes that Violet Markey is also standing on the ledge with the same intention. He saves her through a mix of humor (e.g., “I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to look like I’ve been run through the wood chipper at my funeral” [7]) and compassionate direction (e.g., “hold on to the rail, lean against it and then lift your right foot up and over” [8]). Subsequent to attaining safety herself, Violet reciprocates by calmly voicing the same instructions to Finch.
The adult characters are portrayed as essentially well-meaning but largely inadequate. Mr. Embry (aka “Mr. Embryo”), Finch’s counselor, essentially threatens to call his mother should he ascend the bell tower again; he is unaware that it was Finch’s older sister, Kate, who called the school claiming that her brother was suffering from the flu when he was actually experiencing an episode of severe depression. Similarly, Mrs. Finch, recently left by her husband for a younger woman, relies upon her 17-year-old daughter to cook and freeze casseroles in order to feed the family dinners during the week. Sad and ineffective due to rejection by her abusive former husband, she told Finch, “I never expected to be single at forty” (39). Desirous of protecting her from concern about his emotional state, Finch never shares the details of his suffering with his mother.
Violet’s parents, who encourage her to overcome her grief at the loss of her older sister, share similarly misguided approaches. Formerly a popular cheerleader, Violet has become socially withdrawn. In response, they encourage her to transcend the impact of this tragic death by reengagement in extracurricular activities. Her constantly smiling school counselor, Mrs. Kresney, encourages the same. Neither truly engage with the cause of Violet’s withdrawal.
The highs and lows of adolescent relationships are explored here as well. Finch experiences ostracism and taunting from his peers. Gabe Romero, for example, a “sworn enemy” of Finch’s since middle school, tries to provoke him by shoving his books out of his arms and behaving cruelly. Conversely, Finch’s best friend, Charlie, climbs the bell tower upon seeing his friend there in order to remind him that the cafeteria is serving pizza for lunch, thereby encouraging Finch to dismiss his suicide plan without embarrassing him.
Finch’s budding relationship with Violet presents another facet. When Mr. Black, the U.S. geography teacher, refuses to excuse her from an oral presentation due to her “extenuating circumstances,” Violet agrees to collaborate with Finch. He falls in love with her and suggests that their presentation involve visits to “places we can go that need to be seen” (42) in their home state of Indiana.
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