Nichole was one character in the story that went from being vulnerable to being influential and powerful. Her father was carrying on an incestuous relationship with her for some time before the accident. She tolerated his unjustly behavior because she was weak and had no confidence within herself. “He wanted me to put my hand on him there again, and so I would (p. 174). I think she knew her and her father’s actions were wrong. She seemed irritated and uncomfortable with herself because she did not have enough courage to stand

Nicole’s resentment towards her father and her strong will enabled her to do the opposite of what her father wanted her to do. She refused to be manipulated into a testimony that would allow an unjustified financial windfall for the townspeople and especially for her money-hungry father. “The lawsuit was wrong…it’s too harmful to too many people (p. 197). Through an act of extraordinary bravery and moral clarity, Nichole puts a halt to the community’s anguish, and her own. Her bitter maturity and sense of revenge was portrayed when she decided to lie in her deposition. Nichole lied in order to end the pain of the townspeople. She lied to end her personal emotional pain. She lied knowing it would work because her father could not counteract what she said without revealing to the world that he was a child molester. This was the moment when Nichole was released from her anger for her father. "Yes," he said, and for the first time since before the accident, he looked me straight in the face. "We know the truth, Nichole. You and I." His large

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Sweet Hereafter, ,