"The Bridge of San Luis Rey"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how, in "The Bridge of San Luis Rey", Thornton Wilder is trying to explore, with the reader, the meaning of life. It looks at how Wilder explores the theme of his novel through the point of view of a third person, Brother Juniper, who witnesses the collapse of the bridge of San Luis Rey and the death of five people. It also examines how the use of sunlight is symbolic of enlightenment and the message that the meaning of life is found among the living.

From the Paper:

"Just as the reader begins to feel that the purpose of life is to discover the meaning of love and the importance of expressing it unreservedly, Wilder raises another complication. The Marquesa is never given a chance to begin anew as she dies on the Bridge of San Luis Rey a few days later. The conflict begins again. What is the meaning of life? If the narrative is taken at face value, it all seems rather senseless, for after all, where is the point in achieving self-realization literally at the point of death? Unless, Wilder intended the reader to derive the meaning through evoking a sense of sympathy for the character of the Marquesa or even a sense of outrage at the waste."

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