Authors Note- This essay is about one of the main characters in the book Pretty Little Liars. It focuses on the different changes this character goes through from before her friend died, to after.
Imagine living a perfect life, you are pretty, popular, and
are a part of a wealthy family. You feel as if nothing could possibly go wrong,
you are on top of the world. Except, in the perfect life of Aria Montgomery, a
character in the book Pretty Little
Liars by Sara Shepard , a seemingly perfect life can get shattered in
the blink of an eye. When Aria’s best friend, Alison, gets murdered she goes
through many changes, making her a stronger and more independent person.
Since Aria and Alison
were known as the “popular girls” at their school, Aria was constantly under
pressure to look the best, dress the best and impress everyone. Multiple times
Alison would demand Aria to change parts about her, she even manipulated Aria
into putting bright pink streaks into her hair. It made Aria look “a little
less gothic” as Alison said. However, once Alison died Aria changed her outer appearance
to fit her own style, she became more independent. If Alison hadn’t lost her life, Aria would
still be struggling to find ways to impress her and feel good enough for her
best friend. Since Alison had such an impact on Aria’s life, her death was the
catalyst that lead Aria to change her style.
Although Alison’s
death was the catalyst that made Aria
rethink her look, Alison also had a toll on Aria’s relationship with her
parents. Before Alison’s murder, Aria shut her parents out and wouldn’t let
them in. She was like many other teenagers, and would constantly battle with
her parents and overlook their signs of trying to connect with her. Aria even
started impacting her parents’ marriage and they started to fight more. Yet
after Aria learned that loved ones could disappear out of nowhere, she became
closer to her family and began to open up to them. While she was friends with
Alison she kept a vital secret from her mom about her dad which eventually
slipped out once she became closer to her mom. She also became close enough
with her mom to tell her that she was dating her teacher. If Alison hadn’t left Aria’s life, Aria
would’ve gradually become detached from her parents and shut them out
completely.
However, Aria
isn’t alone because there are many different characters that are similar to
Aria that push their family members away from them. In the book The Outsiders
by S.E. Hinton the main character, Ponyboy, is constantly fighting with his older brother
Darry. He believes that Darry considers him the unwanted child and a
disappointment to the family. For instance Darry would always yell at Ponyboy
if he didn’t get the best grades or if he forgot to clean his room. Ponyboy
would always start arguing with him, turning it into a bigger problem. It took
three deaths and a slap in the face to change Ponyboy’s opinion of Darry. Him
and Darry are now closer, and aren’t as fast to jump to conclusions about each
other. If Ponyboy hadn’t changed, him and Darry would still be fighting,
causing chaos for their friends and unwanted stress on their shoulders. This change
was an overall good change because Ponyboy and Darry are now more connected.
Like Ponyboy and
Darry, Aria and her parents eventually became closer, helping Aria become a
stronger person. Before Alison’s death Aria was a typical sixteen year old who
cried over little disputes with friends, or breakups with boyfriends. After
Alison’s death Aria has become a stronger person, she has been able to not only
deal with the death of her best friend, but also has coped while dealing with a
treacherous stalker who knows all her secrets. She somehow manages to keep her
cool and protect her loved ones from also becoming victims of this malicious
person. If I was in Aria’s shoes, I would lose it and give the stalker complete
control over me, which Aria would’ve done if she hadn’t grown stronger from the
support of her family, or her the death of her best friend.
There are many
things that would be different about Aria if Alison had never died. She would still be a part of a perfect world
where to everyone else she is pretty, popular, and rich. However, Alison did
die and Aria has changed immensely because of it. Expressing herself, and
opening up to her parents are some of the ways Aria changed due to Alison death,
but overall she became a strong and independent human being.
No comments:
Post a Comment