This thesis examines the novel The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides and its film adaptation directed by Sofia Coppola from the perspective of narration and narrative voice. The main objective is to compare the collective first-person narrator of the novel with the narration of the film and to explore how this transformation affects the representation of themes such as adolescence, coming of age, and the loss of innocence. The analysis draws on narratological theories of Mieke Bal and Shlomith Rimmon-Kenan as well as on theories of film narration and adaptation of Linda Hutcheon.
In the novel, the collective narrator constructs a retrospective, fragmented, and partly unreliable perspective that contributes to the mythologization of the Lisbon sisters and emphasises their inaccessibility. In contrast, the film reconfigures this narrative structure through visual and auditory means, using cinematography, editing and music to create a more immediate and intimate portrayal of the girls’ experience. The comparative analysis demonstrates that the transformation of the narrator influences the representation of femininity, adolescence, and social constraints. The thesis thus highlights the crucial role of narrative perspective in shaping meaning across literary and film media.
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