Pictures Symbol Analysis

Pictures represent Jacob’s connection (or lack of connection) to the past. Abe initially shows Jacob photos of the kids at Miss Peregrine’s as a way of connecting Jacob with Abe’s own childhood (particularly because Jacob is also peculiar, though he doesn’t know it at the time). Abe uses pictures as a conduit for stories about growing up at the children’s home. But as Jacob grows older and refuses to believe that the photos are real, he also rejects his former sense of connection to his grandfather’s past, believing that his grandfather was largely exaggerating the stories and lying about his upbringing.

Ultimately, Jacob recognizes that the pictures are connected to his grandfather’s past. As he sorts through an old trunk in Miss Peregrine’s home, he discovers similar pictures and then meets some of the children who appear in the photos. In doing so, he not only realizes Abe’s stories were true, but he also renews his personal connection to his grandfather’s past, even entering the world depicted in the photos as he learns more about his own identity as a peculiar.

At the end of the book, the children don’t take any photo albums with them as they set out from the house. Instead, Bronwyn takes Miss Peregrine’s camera and takes new pictures as they set out on three boats from the island. Jacob comments that perhaps he might one day “have [his] own stack of yellowed photos to show skeptical grandchildren,” suggesting that he intends to use future photos as a connection to his own past.