Olive Kitteridge Character Analysis

From the first day we are born until our very last, we encounter many experiences that come and go or stay with us forever. These experiences leave their impression behind and change our values, perceptions, attitudes, etc. Through this development, a sense of vulnerability and fear grows within us and we are forced to deal with on our own. The novel Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout embodies this essential theme to portray the complexity of human nature thorough the life of the main character, Olive Kitteridge.
In the beginning of the novel, Olive’s flawed character is recognized by her own husband, Henry, and other people living in the town of Crosby. The series of stories reveal her strengths and weaknesses that make her almost invincible from the outside world. She is definitely a strong woman in her own sense, but deep beneath her hard exterior there
With the help of Jack, she finally accepts the fault for driving away her family through her actions as she mentions in her emails, “But it has to be my fault, too. Henry said I never apologized for anything, ever, and maybe he was right...He was right” (Strout 267). In this relationship, she starts to feel a true meaning of hope to continue living instead of wanting to die quick. No longer will she be tormented by her questions concerning her son’s behavior because she is conscious of the truth.
The final lines of the novel begin a new and final stage in Olive Kitteridge’s life. Olive realizes, “ It baffled her, the world. She did not want to leave it yet” (Strout 270). She has found a promising will to live out her days with an honest appreciation towards the world. It leaves the readers with the understanding that Olive decides the right choice to keep her loneliness from killing her. Instead she embraces and endures her vulnerability with this newfound