We had no choice
One of the main motifs in the play is the idea that the girls felt as if they had no control over their lives. The girls felt as if they were prisoners and this also prevented them from fighting and from militating for better conditions. The girls did not change their ideas even after many years passed. Instead, they remained akin to prisoners of their own minds.
The house
The vast majority of the action is told through a series of flashbacks by each character. The action takes place primarily inside the home where the girls were kept prisoners and near the home after the girls decided to return to it years later. The house thus becomes the central symbol in the play, with a dual meaning. On one hand, the house stands as a symbol for the suffering the girls had to go through. On the other hand, it is also a symbol of their resistance and inner strength.
The ghost
The eight girls narrating inside the play are all survivors of truly traumatic events through which they had to live through. Other girls were not so lucky and either died as a result of the horrible treatment inflicted upon them or killed themselves. These girls eventually came back to the house as ghosts and are present in the play as well. This ghosts are also used here as symbols representing the fact that the truth cannot be hidden and should never be forgotten.
Scars
While some girls decided to commit suicide when they could no longer take the harsh treatment, other girls turned to self-harm. The scars described on many of the girls prove that self-harm was a common practice among the girls and a coating mechanism they all used at some point or another. The scars are also a symbol, represents the way in which the girls felt powerless. The fact that the scars remained may also suggest that most of the girls continued to feel the same way even as adults.
Voices
The play ends in an uplifting manner, with the author urging everyone who has a voice to rise to action and to try and protect those who are pressed and abused. The voice also becomes used here as a symbol, representing the power some people have either because they come from a good family or a privileged social background. According to the author, these people have the moral obligation to stand up for those who have no power and to help them have a better life.
