Themes

One major theme that I recognized was the theme of how "Tragedy can change human beings for better or for worse."
The characters in this novel are so engulfed with their secrets that their mental state and they shed the old selves they used to be. Charles was already a half-drunk but after the death of Bunny he went berserk. He was constantly drunk or high, and the people around him didn't like that. He also had bad relations with Henry, and tried to kill him. Charles was affected in a bad way by the tragedy and the secret of it.
Though Richard was affected negatively, I feel like he was the only one who had good come out of it. He was the only one who graduated and made something of himself, and he didn't let the incident control him like others. He had dreams, and is still haunted when he thinks about certain things, but he didn't' jump off the high end like the others. However, Camilla is the same way too. Though she didn't' make anything of herself, she wasn't completely mental like the others.
Francis is obviously haunted by the occurrence in the woods by the ravine. He is not as openly haunted, but there are times when we get glimpses of it. For one, he called Henry because he was having panic/anxiety attacks, a direct result of the stress and fear that he had. Henry was also affected by the death of Bunny, or mainly the result of it. After Julian found out he left the school. This was a tragedy in its own for Henry. Henry become distant from everyone else and a bit depressed. The event was haunting him. In the end when he kills himself, I think a part of him was happy that Charles brought the gun and shot Richard. It gave him an opportunity to kill himself, while also saving a friend.
The tragedy witnessed in this novel changed Charles, Henry, and Francis for the worst, and they had the more negative affects. Camille and Richard are obviously hindered emotionally too, but I feel it changed them for the better. This theme deals with American society because we often face tragedies that can change us. They usually change us into good beings and bad beings. For example: September 11, 2001. This was a tragedy that struck the United States hard, and we were negatively affected. The entire country was mourning and continues to mourn for all of the people that lost their lives on that day. We also entered the war with Iraq, which is definitely not good to solve violence with violence. However, the good thing that came out of this was the feeling of patriotism and it united us as one again. This book directly shows how we have to make the choice of what we want to do with a negative situation we are handed.