Throughout most of the novel, Shine is bent on revenge—first for Hiram’s death and later for her friend Birdie’s rape—and continually thwarted. But when she finally has a chance to exact some justice in the barn loft, Shine balks. Later, she muses that revenge had seemed “satisfying. And if not easy, at least straightforward: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. But mercy? And forgiveness? That was tougher. More complicated. Meandering. Certainly not achieved in one hotheaded instant.” How does this shift in her understanding allow Shine to move forward instead of being mired in the past?
Shine’s intense love for her family & her strong-willed personality had always driven her (& sustained her) in the past. However, when she WAS able to exact her version of revenge by tipping off the FBI as to Frank Nash’s whereabouts, she learned the consequences of revenge could be out of her control and devastating. I believe that shock coupled with her time on the farm afterwards helped her to realize that revenge would only compound her losses, not compensate for them. She had come to know in the end that she did not want to go there anymore.
I think welcoming Wren as her own child helped Shine to realize that mercy and moving forward is not a sign of weakness, but of strength. Rebecca’s well placed shot allowed Shine to escape a guilt that would have haunted her.
Terry_T, I agree, Shine saw the full side of revenge, when what you start you don’t know where it will end. I was happy that she was able to grow.
Shine wanted to avenge the murder of her father but changed when she realized forgiveness was more difficult but overall more satisfying.
I, too, think Shine would have suffered intense guilt if Jed had died. I’m unsure she would have been able to open her heart to Wren and John.
A focus on revenge, certainly hurts the person emotionally as well as physically. Shine’s moving on from this focus allowed her to have happy, productive life.