Jar of Hearts

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, physical abuse, emotional abuse, child death, rape, addiction, and cursing.

“She describes her fear and confusion, things she’s never discussed with anyone before, not even Angela, and certainly not her father. Things that for years were packed away in a mental lockbox, stored in a corner of her mind that she never allowed herself to visit. If they gave degrees for compartmentalizing, Geo would have a Ph.D.”

Geo’s testimony against Calvin forces her to publicly confront her traumatic memories of their abusive relationship for the first time. Keeping the truth hidden all these years to avoid legal consequences exacerbated their harmful psychological effects, which establishes the theme of The Psychological Weight of Guilt and Secrets. On the outside, she moved on with her life and enjoyed success as if nothing happened. Her outward denial of the truth mirrors her inner repression of distressing thoughts and feelings, both of which are evoked by Part 1’s title, “Denial.”

“Anytime anyone googles her name, the Sweetbay Strangler case will come up, because nothing on the internet ever dies. She’ll have to start her life completely over again. But not from the bottom, lower than the bottom, clawing her way out of the hole she dug herself into.”

Geo knows that many people will perceive her five-year sentence as getting off easy. She’ll have to cope with people’s belief, which she partially shares, that she hasn’t suffered as much as she deserves to for keeping silent after Angela’s murder. Realistically, though, Geo understands that her time in prison is only the beginning of her punishment because of how interaction with the justice system affects people’s lives even after completing their formal sentences. This supplements the text’s depiction of Geo’s time in prison to create a grim and desolate mood. It also suggests that The Enduring Trauma of Violent Crimes can extend even to those involved in committing them.