Essay Questions

Loneliness is a central theme in Simon Van Booy’s Love Begins in Winter. Show how the same is achieved in the novel.

One underlying truth about the characters employed in the work is the fact that they are both fighting some form of loneliness. Even though the circumstances for each of these characters differ, they are all predominantly linked by a thread of loneliness. For instance, Molly is caught up in thinking about her past to the extent that she struggles when it comes to allowing herself to interact with new people and make new friends. Loneliness is thus a theme explicitly brought out in the work.

Show how love is explored in the story, Love Begins in Winter.

The theme of love is well evident in the story. First, there is romantic love and familial love. As the anonymous narrator begins telling the story of young Johnathan her brother, it becomes apparent that the narrator clearly loves him so much. Even though her brother dies, she goes to the park thinking that whoever is there is her brother which is not the case. On the other hand, romantic love is expressed between Bruno and Hannah, who meet and eventually fall in love with each other.