43 pages 1 hour read

Charles Martin

When Crickets Cry: a Novel of the Heart

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2006

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Symbols & Motifs

The Heart

Hearts, both physical and metaphorical, are a constant symbol throughout the novel. This idea is best represented in the complementary yet dichotomous characters of Reese and Emma:

If my wonderings about life were scientific, bent toward examination and physical discovery, Emma’s all leaned toward matters of the heart. While I could understand and explain the physics behind a rainbow, Emma saw the colors (48).

While Reese views the heart from a medical perspective, Emma viewed it as an instrument of love. He sees the heart’s physical function as a miracle; Emma prioritized the heart’s ability to love. For much of the novel, when Reese considers the heart, he thinks about it as a surgeon would. He learned about the anatomy of the human heart: He read textbooks, went to medical school, and became a surgeon, all in the hopes of one day fixing Emma’s heart. From Emma’s perspective, Reese has given her his heart; her heart is saved more by his love than by his surgical prowess. When Emma died, Reese felt like a failure because he couldn’t save her physical heart, but by the end of the novel he comes to realize that his love for her mattered more.

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 43 pages of this Study Guide
Plus, gain access to 8,500+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features:
+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools