Literary Devices in Eleanor & Park
Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory
Setting
In Eleanor & Park, the time period of our story is nearly as important as the place: 1986. Rowell constantly sprinkles references to mid-80s pop culture and music into her book, but we get the...
Narrator Point of View
So the narrative technique is a really distinctive part of this book, isn't it? Though we're always one step removed from the characters—this ain't first-person, after all—we hop back and forth...
Genre
There's really no other place to put this book: Eleanor & Park definitely belongs in the young adult section. You've got two teenage protagonists dealing with young love, family issues, identit...
Tone
Teenagers often experience things intensely, especially emotions. It's kind of like going through life the way Eleanor thinks Park looks in his eyeliner—with the "volume turned up" (35.150)—and...
Writing Style
Rainbow Rowell doesn't mess around in this book—she gets straight to the point. We don't have pages of flowery description here, or a lot of fancy language, and instead Rowell speaks like a teena...
What's Up With the Title?
Nothing fancy here, folks. This book is called Eleanor & Park because it's about… Eleanor and Park. This simple, no-brainer title seems to be in line with Rowell's straightforward writing sty...
What's Up With the Ending?
No doubt about it, Eleanor & Park is a heartbreaking story. Even though we know from the first page that these two will be separated by the end, by the time the big goodbye rolls around, we're...
Tough-o-Meter
Even though this book is a total page-turner, with straightforward language anyone can understand, we think it's a little more challenging than it might seem. That's for two reasons: (1) The themes...
Plot Analysis
Across a Crowded BusMisfit-high-schooler Park spots bully-magnet Eleanor on the morning bus and, to save her from certain torment, he grudgingly gives her a seat. Love at Second Sight, or Mayb...
Trivia
In her blog post, "Why is Park Korean?" Rainbow Rowell says that her own dad served in Korea in the army—just like Park's dad. Also, the book takes place in the same neighborhood Rowell lived in...
Steaminess Rating
This is a teen romance, and not just any romance—this is true love. And while Eleanor and Park are both pretty inexperienced when it comes to, er, physical expressions of their feelings, they def...
Allusions
Emily Dickinson, "I have been hungry all the years," (3.21)Medea (3.30)The World According to Garp (4.41)Watership Down (4.41)Oliver's Story (4.41)Love Story (4.41)Little Men (4.41)Little...