Consequences of Brutality

Many of the characters in this novel live with and try to deal with the consequences of brutality. Whether they are dealing with a death for which they are responsible or they are a victim of brutality, the novel illustrates that brutality is not without its consequences. One specific example of this brutality comes with the fight over Evie.

Jeanette is one character who is both a victim of brutality and one who commits brutality. Jeanette started her life as a middle-class black woman married to her husband Damien. After he was hurt on the job, began self-medicating, and then got addicted to drugs Jeanette’s life began to go downhill. Things were even worse when Jeanette lost her job. She turned into a drug-addicted women who had lost her child to child services. In a drugged rage she killed her husband with a...