The Character Archetypes In Rachael Lippincott's The Lucky List

When reading, some may look past the deeper meanings that the author implemented into the text. A literary theory is used to help readers understand some of the different meanings in the text. For example, when reading The Lucky List while concentrating on literary archetypes, the reader will see that someone’s true identity comes to life when surrounded by the right people even when they think they know their true self. When concentrating on literary archetypes, the quest a situational archetype, as well as the mentor character archetype, and the small town symbolic archetype develop the identity theme in the novel. The Lucky List by Rachael Lippincott is a young adult fiction book published in 2021 that follows Emily through her path of grief and self-identity after the loss of her mother. Emily’s junior year ended on a rocky note when

Emily lives in Huckabee, a town where you can “put a name to every face” (Lippincott 34). Huckabee, like many small towns, is where “...everyone knows everyone and judges them…” (Literary Theory Introduction) and everyone is in everyone else’s business. This leads to a fear of judgment that Emily gains due to her wrecking her relationship with Matt. This judgment is one of the reasons that she thinks she has to be with Matt. While working, Blake comes to visit Emily and one of Emily’s coworkers is gay, and when Emily hears him tell Blake she is surprised that “she doesn’t even raise an eyebrow at his gay comment…” (Lippincott 36). She says that “It can be pretty hit or miss around Huckabee.” (Lippincott 36) which shows that Huckabee isn’t very accepting of people that they think are “out of the norm”. This response explains why Emily was so hesitant to accept that she is gay and likes Blake. The small town influences Emily to act as a shell of herself and is a key challenge that she must overcome to find her