Emerald Ring (symbol)
The emerald engagement ring handed to Ani by Luke is a symbol of the flawlessness Ani is aspiring to achieve in life. Ani has gone through a lot, and she has had terrible experiences, but she has worked her way up to be a successful woman and is about to marry a wealthy man. When Luke proposes, he gives her a ring that is a symbol of the perfection she is looking for. Ani does not want anyone to think that she does not have everything in life, and she must confirm this through a lavish wedding with Luke. Since Ani is looking forward to doing a documentary about her past, she wants to have the ring on her finger to confirm her accomplishments.
Arthur's Picture (symbol)
When she and Arthur have a terrible fight, Ani steals a framed picture of Arthur with his estranged father. She takes the object because she knows it is important to Arthur, and she ends up keeping it for years. The picture symbolizes how individuals are shaped by their past; even though Arthur tries to be cold about his relationship with his father, the photo reveals that he was deeply hurt. In turn, when Ani keeps the photo for years, it symbolizes how she still often thinks about Arthur and the events at Bradley. Right before their wedding, Ani realizes that Luke carelessly broke the frame and threw the picture out without telling her. This action symbolizes his lack of care and interest in Ani's past.
Restrictive Eating (motif)
Ani often talks about eating very little, and fixates on being extremely thin, especially in the lead-up to her wedding and the filming of the documentary. This motif of restricted eating shows her desire to cope with trauma and distress by attempting to regain control. As a teenager, Ani experienced a significant loss of bodily autonomy when she was raped, and she later almost lost her life when Arthur and Ben attacked the school. As an adult, she maintains very strict control over her body because she wants to feel that she can decide what happens to it. Ani is also cynically aware of how much thinness bestows privilege on women, and she wants to use every tool that she can to gain power. Ani's restrictive eating shows that she is not really relaxed or at ease with herself, and that she is constantly in a state of being guarded and on edge.
Clothing (motif)
Both as a teenager and an adult, Ani is very focused on what she is wearing, and how to use clothes to project the right appearance and fit in. She ends up working in a very fashion-conscious field (magazine journalism) and living in a city where many people value appearance. Before significant events, such as seeing Luke's family, or filming the documentary, Ani carefully composes an outfit that will project the exact message she wants. The motif of clothing reflects the theme of appearance versus reality; the more fragile and vulnerable that Ani feels on the inside, the more she cultivates a cold and sophisticated exterior.
Ani's Running Shorts (symbol)
After Dean attacks Ani and she fights back, the other popular students turn against her. Hilary and Olivia, who had initially befriended Ani, cruelly steal a pair of her running shorts that are stained with menstrual blood and display them to the school. The shorts symbolize how Ani is treated as if she is the one to blame for what happened to her. While no one is critical of the boys, Ani is branded and shamed for being a "skank." The blood stained shorts reflect how, historically, women who have been viewed as sexually transgressive have sometimes been publicly shamed. Shaming Ani with evidence of her menstruation also reveals how a patriarchal culture is often repulsed by women's bodies; Ani is treated like she is merely a physical object, but then also shamed for being a human being with biological processes.
