Preview of Dolores Claiborne Summary:

Dolores Claiborne is a telling choice for the name of his heroine. Dolores comes from the Latin "dolor" or "to suffer." Claiborne, her maiden name which she reassumes after Joe's death, is derived from Old English, meaning "born of clay." Both reflect her humble beginnings. This is a narrative of suffering and of weakness or, referring to a dominant metaphor in the novel, of eclipsed lives. Both Dolores and Vera are women who...