I Know What You Did Last Summer

“The cold feeling in her stomach was spreading higher, up where it touched her heart.”

This passage describes Julie’s feelings of guilt about the accident. Throughout the novel, emotions are conveyed with physical descriptions. These sensory details help the reader understand what the characters are feeling.

“The girl in the mirror bore little resemblance to last year’s Julie, bubbly, bouncy, spark plug of the pep squad, the cheerleader with the smallest size and the biggest yell.”

Here, Julie notices the emotional and mental toll that the trauma from the accident has taken on her. The changes in her personality—becoming more introverted and studious—are The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter.

“I ought to hug her more often, Julie thought. I don’t deserve somebody like this for a mother.”

This passage develops the theme of Family and Identity Formation. Julie feels unworthy of her mother’s unwavering love because of her trauma and guilt over the accident. She wants to be a better daughter by showing physical affection and no longer wants to hide the truth about the hit-and-run.

“We made the pact, didn’t we?”

Barry reminds Julie and Helen about their pact of secrecy. He tries to convince them that keeping the accident a secret means that no one found out, and the note Julie received is just a prank. While Julie didn’t break the pact, it was her gift of flowers to Daniel’s funeral—illustrating The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter—that enabled the antagonist to find them.

“It would have been back last July when the thing actually happened. Why would anybody wait ten months to react?”

Here, Helen supports Barry’s assertion that the note is a prank because it comes almost a year after the accident. The antagonist (Bud/Collie) took this long to react because he was overseas in the war—a violent, external factor that the teens don’t consider. Helen and Barry both look for a rationale to explain why the letter is unrelated to the accident.

“‘Well, un-panic,’ Barry told her.”

This passage develops the theme of Gender Roles. Barry, an example of toxic masculinity, tries to convince Julie and Helen that they are panicking about the note for no reason. In other words, he supports the stereotype that women are too “emotional.”

“Jobs like that are on-again, off-again. I was about ready to come home for a while anyway.”

Here, Ray describes why he came back to his hometown. One of The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter was his leaving town to travel around California, taking odd jobs. However, Ray cannot escape his guilt by relocating geographically. This passage can also be contrasted with how Ray can come home whenever he chooses, while veterans—like the antagonist—cannot.

“I’m no better than Barry, Jules, so don’t try to make him the black knight and me the prince on the white horse.”

This passage also develops the theme of Gender Roles. Ray’s statement to Julie speaks to stereotypical ways men are characterized as good and evil. This black-and-white thinking obscures the nuances of men’s personalities; men can be both good and evil.

“As the second daughter in a large family, she had no illusions about magic and fairy godmothers.”

Like the previous quote, this passage references fairy tales. Helen knows the tales are only fiction, and she must work hard to ascend to a higher socioeconomic class than her family. Helen’s realism about her family’s circumstances affects her identity formation.

“There were plenty of other seats around the pool and a number of other people beside whom he could have sat.”

This is a clue to the identity of the antagonist. Collie sits right next to Helen, and she believes this is because he is romantically attracted to her. At several points in the novel, ideas about romance distract the teens from realizing who the antagonist is.

“I wouldn’t want a wife of mine working.”

This passage is another example of the theme of Gender Roles. Barry, upholding outdated notions about femininity and women, believes that women should be housewives who don’t work.

“‘Maybe so,’ Collie said, ‘but his mother doesn’t seem to be in on the secret.’”

Here, Collie is talking to Helen about Barry’s mother. Helen claims that Barry is going to marry her, but his mother denies her entry to his hospital room. Helen sees herself marrying Barry, but she is the only one. Barry doesn’t see it, and neither does his mother.

“Could somebody have had a gun at the demonstration?”

Julie wonders if her mother’s assertion that Barry was shot by someone participating in the war protest is true. She correctly assumes that the demonstration is nonviolent. This passage hints at the antagonist’s PTSD from the war being a motivating factor in his revenge—one of The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter.

“A glance in the mirror as she passed it caused her to stop to comb her hair and apply some lipstick. Collie might be no more than a platonic friend, but he was, after all, a male friend.”

Helen decides to clean up a little for Collie, which he—and other women in her apartment complex—consider to be leading him on. Helen believes that her best asset is her physical appearance, and looking her best in front of men is important to her. This speaks to Gender Roles that some women feel they must adhere to, such as being conventionally attractive in the male gaze.

“‘All right,’ she continued, ‘if you insist on talking about that night, then, yes, there was a moon in that pine tree. Yes, it was a beautiful picnic. Yes, we killed a little boy. Is there anything more?’”

Julie responds to Ray’s assertion about the beautiful moon on the night of the accident. This is another example of how romance distracts the teens from thinking about the antagonist. Here, Ray wants to win Julie back more than he wants to solve the mystery of the antagonist. However, Julie’s guilt makes it impossible for her to enjoy this moment.

“Ray realized with a start how much her eyes had changed since that picture was taken. There was no hint of laughter in them now. They were eyes that had not laughed in a long time.”

Here, Ray notes one of The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter—Julie’s changed appearance. Throughout the novel, eyes symbolize morals and emotions. Julie’s eyes show how trauma has made it hard for her to experience happiness.

“I was just a little girl when Daddy died, but even now, when it’s six o’clock and other fathers are coming home from work, I’ll find myself glancing at the front door.”

Before the accident, Julie experienced trauma when her father died. This is part of the theme of Family and Identity Formation. She reacts differently than the other teens at the time of the accident because—unlike them—she knows what it is like to lose a family member to an untimely death.

“Julie opened her mouth as though to respond to the statement, thought better of it, and closed it again.”

Here, Julie considers telling Helen that Barry is cheating on her but does not, further developing the theme of Gender Roles. Rather than being honest with her female friend—potentially strengthening the bonds between women—Julie supports Barry and his infidelity through her silence. She prioritizes being loyal to a man whom she supposedly doesn’t like over giving Helen important information. This omitted information might have helped Helen realize the true identity of the antagonist and make informed decisions about her life.

“I wish somebody would shoot a bullet into his guts so he’d know what it was like to lie on the ground in the dark and yell and not have anybody hear you.”

This passage is an example of Barry’s ableism. When faced with the idea that he might be paralyzed and unable to play football, Barry believes his life is not worth living. These feelings result in him wishing Ray would also be harmed. This develops the theme of Gender Roles: Barry betrays not only women but also men.

“If only I hadn’t let myself be talked into that damned pact, if I’d listened to Julie that night instead of Barry—”

Ray regrets his actions on the night of the accident. His adherence to traditional Gender Roles—being more loyal to men than women—is something he feels guilty about and tries to change. He repeatedly tries to get all the teens to dissolve the pact after finding out about the note sent to Julie.

“It’s bad enough shooting people and being shot at, but that’s the military—you tell yourself you’re there for that purpose, to kill people who are there to kill you—the army’s arranged it for you, and the good old USA is behind it, so the whole thing’s got the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval…”

The antagonist (Bud/Collie) talks about his PTSD from war. One of The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter is the warping of his mind. After being told that manslaughter in war is moral, he believes that manslaughter off the battlefield is also moral. Bud/Collie believes his revenge on the teens for killing his half-brother is necessary because the legal system of the US is broken.

“‘Terror time’s over,’ she said aloud.”

Helen tries to convince herself to believe Barry’s lie about the phone call that led to his shooting. One of The Effects of Guilt About Manslaughter is denial. Helen does not want to believe that someone is coming after them to exact revenge.

“How would I have proved it?”

This passage is part of the antagonist’s explanation of why he does not pursue justice for his brother through legal channels. He does not have physical evidence—or any evidence that would hold up in court—that the teens were the ones who committed the hit-and-run.