Internal And External Conflicts In Jacob Have I Loved

Throughout Paterson’s novel Jacob Have I Loved, Sara Louise Bradshaw endures a long internal and external conflicts of transitioning into adulthood and separation from others. Louise’s entire life has been about her and her beautiful twin and because of this 80% (attention to her twin) -20% (attention on herself) relationship, she settled for mediocracy in life. The novel beings as Louise is living on an island where she works with her father while her twin sister is attending a better school, which shows the parallel contrast between the two sisters. Louise is constantly comparing herself to her twin sister Caroline but as the novel progresses, Louise’s character develops and the conflict she faces of the relationship between her and Caroline