Loveless

Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2020

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Parts 1-2

Part 3

Parts 4-5

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

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Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

Pride Society

The Pride Society at Durham University is an important symbol of community and belonging in Loveless. For Pip, the Pride Society is the first space in which she meets other queer people. This solidarity improves her self-confidence and sense of self. As the president, Sunil protects the integrity of the Pride Society for this exact purpose. He understands how difficult it is to struggle with one’s identity in isolation. For them, the Pride Society is a safe, inclusive space for all regardless of where they are in their journey of self-discovery. In other words, finding allies is crucial to finding oneself.

Shakespeare Society

The Shakespeare Society at Durham University is an important symbol of friendship. It also represents art imitating life, and vice versa. Rooney restarted the Shakespeare Society because Shakespeare kept her going throughout her lonely experience with her emotionally abusive ex-boyfriend. She has happy memories of performing Shakespearean plays with her former friend Beth, and longs to recreate these memories. Thus, for her, the Shakespeare Society is another chance at finding friendship and herself. It brings Georgia, Pip, Jason, Rooney, and Sunil together, their rehearsals often providing a welcome distraction from their own conflicts. Performing Shakespearean plays helps these young people express their complex, often repressed emotions about love through the guise of theater. The scenes they perform mirror their real-life struggles, which are sometimes romantic or tragic, but always worthwhile.

Love

Love is an important motif, mentioned in the title of the novel and permeating each character’s journey toward happiness. The novel deals with self-love, as well as love for and from others. In coming to terms with her asexuality, Georgia lets go of her fantasy of romance. Instead, she discovers romantic love is not the only type of love. Self-love is crucial to her character development, as heteronormative society often ignores or judges identities such as asexuality. Furthermore, Georgia learns to treasure platonic love, which is just as meaningful as romantic love. Pip and Rooney also struggle with love. They both want love and feel love for each other, but these feelings manifest as fighting. This shows how love can push people to be their worst selves because love makes one vulnerable and sometimes defensive. When Pip and Rooney finally confront their feelings, they come together as their best selves. In other words, love can enable authenticity.