How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph) or (Part.Paragraph)
Quote #10
Poor vain and vulnerable Lola, with the pearl-studded choker and the rosewater scent, who longed to throw off the last restraints of childhood, who saved herself from humiliation by falling in love, or persuading herself she had, and who could not believe her luck when Briony insisted on doing the talking and blaming. And what luck that was for Lola—barely more than a child, prized open and taken—to marry her rapist. (3.260)
We mentioned this quote in the "Coming of Age" theme as well. Sex and coming of age are often connected. Usually, having sex is seen as one way that people grow up, and there's some of that in this novel too (Robbie and Cecilia both feel transformed by their sexual encounter, for instance). But this quote suggests that the two can be linked in other ways too. Specifically, wanting to grow up makes Lola confused about both sex and love. Sex doesn't make her an adult. Rather, wanting to be an adult, or being caught between adulthood and childhood, makes her unable to see Paul's thuggishness as thuggishness. In some ways, Paul's rape traps her as a child forever. Because of his assault, she ends up living her life based on a crush she convinced herself she had when she was fifteen.