58 pages • 1-hour read
The Elements: A Novel
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Symbols & Motifs
Content Warning: This section of the guide features sexual violence and harassment, rape, child sexual abuse, child abuse, death by suicide, child death, emotional abuse, physical abuse, antigay bias, bullying, suicidal ideation, and self-harm.
The Cottage
The cottage that Vanessa escapes to in Water is a symbol that represents the process of healing from trauma. The cottage and the island draw Vanessa in because of their “simplicity and monastic nature” (4), allowing her the space to process the death of Emma and the conviction of Brendan without distractions. Vanessa likes how spare the cottage is because it is a space in which she will have to look inward, with no one and nothing around her. By describing the cottage as monastic, the author creates an association with Vanessa’s perception of the cottage as a space of forgiveness and her goal of self-reflection.
When Aaron and Emmet arrive on the island for Vanessa’s funeral, they stay in the same cottage. Now, decades later, the cottage appears the same and bears the same symbolism. Aaron hopes that their trip will be transformative for Emmet, especially the “digital isolation” (458). Without his phone or the internet, Emmet will need to engage with Aaron and Rebecca. In this way, the cottage represents a world without the distractions that characters in the novel use to distract them from their life decisions, allowing them to deal with complex and uncomfortable emotions.
Evan’s Cellphone
Evan’s cellphone, the missing piece of evidence that is the focal point of the prosecution’s case in Earth, is a motif that reflects the theme of Resistance to Taking Responsibility. Evan uses his phone to film Robbie raping Lauren, despite Lauren begging him to stop. The video contains all of the evidence to destroy their case and condemn them. Though many presume Evan destroyed the phone, he instead hid it: “I turned my phone off and made my way over to the flower beds at the corner of our development […] I knelt down, and, using my hands, I dug a hole about two feet deep. Then I buried the phone beneath the earth” (234). By hiding the phone, Evan refuses to take ownership of the event and his role in it. However, he does not destroy the phone to protect himself and Robbie, which suggests that he has doubts about his actions that night. When he buries the phone, he maintains the option of telling the truth, foreshadowing his ultimate decision to turn it into the police and accept his guilt.
Coke Can
The Coke can that Freya offers to each of her victims is a motif that reflects the theme of Trauma as a Transmissive Force. For the boys she brings to her apartment, this everyday object evolves into a meaningful and sinister symbol. Unbeknownst to the boys, Freya shakes the Coke to ensure it will explode when they open it. Then, they will take off their shirts and allow her to lead them to the shower.
As one of Freya’s victims, Aaron was once prey to her Coke can trick, and, as an adult, still feels the effects. For Aaron, a Coke can is a reminder of what Freya did to him and is a major catalyst for anxiety. When he goes back to a woman’s apartment in his early 20s after a long night out, she offers him a can of Coke that explodes, leading him to experience PTSD: “I was taken back nine years, to Freya’s apartment, a wide-eyed schoolboy uncertain what to do as she told me that I couldn’t possibly go home with my uniform in such a state. That I should take it off and she’d run it through the washer-dryer for me” (385). Just as the trauma of Freya’s childhood prevents her from forging normal relationships as an adult, so too does Aaron’s years later. The Coke can as a symbol of trauma highlights that, for survivors of abuse, trauma triggers are highly specific and can disrupt the emotional management of trauma even years after the abuse has stopped.
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