Previous
Richard
Lou is a pessimistic girl who constantly believes that she and her friends are right on the precipice of being caught and exposed for their role in Adam’s supposed death. Lou’s main function seems to be to up the tension and anxiety within the group, and she’s often the catalyst for escalation in the group’s fears and schemes.
Lou Quotes in DNA
The DNA quotes below are all either spoken by Lou or refer to Lou. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Scene 1 Quotes
JOHN TATE: Alright. New rule; that word is banned.
[…]
LOU: You can’t ban a word.
JOHN TATE: and if anyone says it I’m going to have to, you know, bite their face. Or something.
DANNY: How can you ban a word?
JOHN TATE: Well just say it then.
Pause.
Say it and see what happens.
They say nothing.
Look, we have to keep together. We have to trust each other and believe in each other. I’m trying to help. I’m trying to keep things together.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
JOHN TATE: Are you on my side? With Richard and Danny? Are you on our side, Cathy?
CATHY: Yes.
JOHN TATE: Good. Lou?
LOU: Yes.
JOHN TATE: You’re on our side, Lou?
LOU: Yes, John.
JOHN TATE: You sure?
LOU: Yeah, I’m –
JOHN TATE: That just leaves you, Brian. You crying little piece of filth.
Beat. BRIAN stops crying. Looks up.
BRIAN: I think we should tell someone.
JOHN TATE begins to walk towards BRIAN.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire DNA LitChart as a printable PDF.
"My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." -Graham S.
Lou Character Timeline in DNA
The timeline below shows where the character Lou appears in DNA. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Scene 1
In a small wood, Lou, John Tate, and Danny stand around talking. Lou worries that the three of them are...
(full context)
...in a career as a dentist, and he doesn’t want to risk messing it up. Lou tells John Tate that someone is dead—and that that fact can’t be underplayed. John Tate...
(full context)
After securing promises of loyalty and solidarity from Danny, Cathy, Lou, and Richard, John Tate notices that Brian is crying. He demands that Brian, whom he...
(full context)
The others are shocked by the specificity of Phil’s plan. Phil continues. He tells Lou, Danny, and Jan to take Adam’s shoes and go to the woods. Lou should put...
(full context)
Scene 2
Leah, Lou, Danny, and Phil are back in the woods near school. Danny reports that the authorities...
(full context)
...aloud if she could get any of the reporters to pay her for an interview. Lou worries that the man with bad teeth will go to prison. Leah says he can’t...
(full context)
...Richard, though, are distressed—they wanted to cover up their own involvement, not frame someone else. Lou, again, states that everyone is “fucked.” Leah agrees that they are. Danny says they can’t...
(full context)
...He says he can’t face the police or stand the way they look at him. Lou says they’re going to have to come clean.
(full context)
Scene 3
In the woods, Cathy, Brian, Phil, Leah, Mark, Lou, and Jan are standing around a boy who is dressed in torn and dirty clothes....
(full context)
...some kind of joke. When he doesn’t answer, she says it’s good that they’ve found Adam—Lou tells her they’re all “fucked.” Jan and Mark both ask what they’re going to do....
(full context)
...the school is renaming the science building after Adam. Adam asks if he’s dead, and Lou tells him he’s not. Brian starts giggling, declaring that everything is “great.” Jan and Mark...
(full context)
...leads Adam away. The others ask Phil what’s going on. Phil tells Mark, Jan, and Lou to go home—and warns them not to breathe a word to anyone. If they follow...
(full context)
Scene 4
...rules with an iron fist—there’s a rumor that she “cut a first year’s finger off.” Lou and Cathy are best friends, and Jan and Mark have started shoplifting. Richard asks if...
(full context)
