Juliet Takes a Breath

Juliet consistently feels like there is a lack of air throughout the novel, especially because she is asthmatic. She feels like she cannot breathe when she is anxious, which is usually triggered by moments where she feels uncomfortable. Juliet’s need for air represents her need for escape from the pressure of other people’s expectations. She struggles to breathe when she talks to Lainie about their relationship, when she talks to her mother on the phone, and when Harlowe stereotypes her in the bookstore. Before she has her final confrontation about Harlowe’s racism at the end of the novel, Juliet struggles to breathe on the hike. After she confronts Harlowe, Juliet is able to breathe easier. When Juliet thinks about all the love she has in her life while floating down the river at the end of the novel, she remembers that she can live forever if she “just let go of [her] fear and lived [her] truth,” which is when Juliet “finally knew what it was to just breathe” (300). Juliet is finally able to understand that she has no need to escape from her life because she has all the love that she needs in herself.