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    Leaving Time

    by

    Picoult, Jodi

    “Leaving Time” by Jodi Picoult is a gripping novel that intertwines mystery, grief, and the bond between humans and elephants. The story follows Jenna Metcalf, a 13-year-old girl searching for her mother, Alice, a renowned elephant researcher who disappeared a decade earlier under mysterious circumstances. With the help of a skeptical psychic and a disgraced detective, Jenna uncovers buried secrets about her mother’s work and the tragic events at an elephant sanctuary. The novel explores themes of memory, loss, and maternal love, while weaving in fascinating insights into elephant behavior and emotions. Picoult blends emotional depth with suspense, culminating in a surprising twist that redefines the narrative.

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    Leaving Time

    Chapter 39: Virgil

    by

    Picoult, Jodi

    The chap­ter “Vir­gil” from *Leav­ing Time* explores a sur­re­al moment of real­iza­tion as the pro­tag­o­nist, Vir­gil, dis­cov­ers his own ethe­re­al exis­tence. The nar­ra­tive begins with a child­hood metaphor about clouds, sym­bol­iz­ing the dis­il­lu­sion­ment of dis­cov­er­ing real­i­ty dif­fers from per­cep­tion. Vir­gil drops a tooth, but it slips through his hand as if he has no phys­i­cal form. When he reach­es for Tal­lu­lah and Jen­na, his hands pass through their smoke-like bod­ies, and Jen­na flick­ers in and out of vis­i­bil­i­ty. Vir­gil recalls ear­li­er encounters—airport staff ignor­ing him, a wait­ress who bare­ly noticed him—hinting that he and oth­ers like him exist in a lim­i­nal state between worlds.

    Virgil’s mem­o­ries deep­en as he reflects on Abby, his land­la­dy dressed in vin­tage cloth­ing, and Ralph, an impos­si­bly old evi­dence room clerk. He real­izes these indi­vid­u­als, like him, are ghosts—present in the world but not tru­ly part of it. A vivid flash­back reveals Virgil’s death in a car crash: the delib­er­ate unbuck­ling of his seat­belt, the impact, and the fleet­ing sen­sa­tion of fly­ing. This moment under­scores his tran­si­tion from life to death, fram­ing his cur­rent exis­tence as a spir­it. The chap­ter blurs the line between real­i­ty and the after­life, empha­siz­ing Virgil’s grad­ual accep­tance of his ghost­ly nature.

    A con­ver­sa­tion with Seren­i­ty, a psy­chic, resur­faces in Virgil’s mind. She com­pares death to falling asleep—a grad­ual detach­ment from the phys­i­cal world. Vir­gil now under­stands this anal­o­gy, rec­og­niz­ing that his cur­rent state mir­rors the sus­pend­ed aware­ness of sleep. As he tries to reach Seren­i­ty, he finds her sol­id and tan­gi­ble, unlike the fad­ing forms of Tal­lu­lah and Jen­na. Her abil­i­ty to per­ceive and inter­act with him con­firms her gen­uine psy­chic gifts, con­trast­ing with Virgil’s ear­li­er skep­ti­cism. This moment high­lights the theme of unseen con­nec­tions between the liv­ing and the dead.

    The chap­ter con­cludes with Virgil’s fleet­ing pres­ence as he begins to van­ish entire­ly. His final thought is a real­iza­tion of Serenity’s true skill, acknowl­edg­ing her as an excep­tion­al psy­chic rather than the fraud he once sus­pect­ed. The nar­ra­tive leaves Vir­gil on the brink of dis­so­lu­tion, his sto­ry a poignant explo­ration of death, accep­tance, and the thin veil between worlds. The prose blends haunt­ing imagery with emo­tion­al depth, leav­ing read­ers to pon­der the nature of exis­tence beyond life.

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    FAQs

    • 1. What realization does Virgil have about his physical state in this chapter, and what clues led him to this conclusion?

      Answer:
      Virgil realizes that he is no longer among the living—that he exists in the world but isn’t truly part of it. This epiphany comes when he attempts to grab Tallulah and his hand passes through her as if she’s made of smoke, followed by Jenna flickering in and out of visibility. He recalls previous encounters where people didn’t react to him (like at the airport or diner), Abby’s anachronistic appearance, and Ralph’s improbable age. These experiences culminate in his memory of the car crash, where he intentionally unbuckled his seatbelt before impact, confirming he had already died.

      2. How does Serenity’s description of death compare to Virgil’s actual experience of it?

      Answer:
      Serenity describes death as akin to falling asleep—a gradual detachment from the physical world, with relaxed muscles and slowed heart rate. Virgil’s experience aligns with this in part (the weightlessness, drifting awareness), but he adds a crucial dimension: the vividness of the afterlife. He notes that, like dreams, this state feels entirely real while experiencing it. His final thought—that Serenity is an excellent psychic—validates her description while acknowledging its limitations, as his transition was more complex than she portrayed.

      3. Analyze the significance of the cloud metaphor opening the chapter. How does it reflect Virgil’s journey?

      Answer:
      The cloud metaphor mirrors Virgil’s shattered assumptions about reality. Just as a child learns clouds aren’t solid but intangible water vapor, Virgil discovers his existence isn’t what it seemed. The imagery of “hurt[ling] through” a cloud parallels his sudden, violent transition in the car crash, while the “smash on the ground” foreshadows his realization of being dead. This metaphor underscores the theme of disillusionment—Virgil, like the child, must reconcile his beliefs with a harsher truth.

      4. Why does Virgil’s final thought about Serenity’s psychic abilities carry thematic weight?

      Answer:
      This moment resolves the tension between skepticism and belief that permeates the narrative. Earlier, Virgil doubted Serenity’s skills, but his confirmation that she accurately sensed his state (unlike others who couldn’t perceive him) validates the supernatural themes. It also highlights irony: a living person (Serenity) could interact with spirits, while Virgil, now a spirit, couldn’t interact with the living. This reinforces the chapter’s exploration of permeable boundaries between life and death.

      5. How does the author use sensory details in Virgil’s crash memory to convey his emotional state?

      Answer:
      The visceral details—tears on his face, the Clapton song, the act of unbuckling—reveal Virgil’s intentional surrender to death. The “glass raining,” “steering wheel boring into his chest,” and “body being thrown” create a kinetic, almost cinematic experience, contrasting with his earlier passivity. The “glorious, silent second” of flight captures his paradoxical relief in self-destruction. These details humanize his choice, making his later realization about his death more poignant.

    Quotes

    • 1. “Do you remember when you were a kid and you thought that clouds must feel like cotton, and then one day you learned that they are actually made up of droplets of water? That if you tried to stretch out on one and take a nap, you—you would just hurtle through it and smash on the ground?”

      This opening metaphor sets the tone for Virgil’s realization about the nature of his existence—what seemed solid and real is revealed to be something entirely different, foreshadowing his coming epiphany about being a spirit rather than a living person.

      2. “Tallulah, the waitress, the ticket agent, Abby, Ralph—all of these people, they were like me. In this world, but not of it.”

      This pivotal moment captures Virgil’s dawning awareness that he and others he’s encountered are spirits lingering in the physical world. The phrase “in this world, but not of it” poetically encapsulates the liminal state of these characters.

      3. “For one glorious, silent second, I flew.”

      This brief but powerful description of Virgil’s death moment contrasts the violence of the car crash with the transcendent experience of release. It represents both an ending and a transition to his current spiritual state.

      4. “When you’re asleep, you think there’s a whole other world that feels completely real while you are dreaming it.”

      This insight builds on Serenity’s earlier explanation of death, comparing the afterlife to the vivid reality of dreams. It suggests that Virgil’s current existence may be just as “real” as his former physical life.

      5. “The last thought I have before I am gone completely is that in spite of what Serenity’s said—in spite of what I had believed—she’s not a lousy psychic. She’s a fucking great one.”

      Virgil’s final realization serves as both a humorous and profound conclusion, validating Serenity’s abilities while also confirming the truth of his spiritual nature as he fully transitions from the physical world.

    Quotes

    1. “Do you remember when you were a kid and you thought that clouds must feel like cotton, and then one day you learned that they are actually made up of droplets of water? That if you tried to stretch out on one and take a nap, you—you would just hurtle through it and smash on the ground?”

    This opening metaphor sets the tone for Virgil’s realization about the nature of his existence—what seemed solid and real is revealed to be something entirely different, foreshadowing his coming epiphany about being a spirit rather than a living person.

    2. “Tallulah, the waitress, the ticket agent, Abby, Ralph—all of these people, they were like me. In this world, but not of it.”

    This pivotal moment captures Virgil’s dawning awareness that he and others he’s encountered are spirits lingering in the physical world. The phrase “in this world, but not of it” poetically encapsulates the liminal state of these characters.

    3. “For one glorious, silent second, I flew.”

    This brief but powerful description of Virgil’s death moment contrasts the violence of the car crash with the transcendent experience of release. It represents both an ending and a transition to his current spiritual state.

    4. “When you’re asleep, you think there’s a whole other world that feels completely real while you are dreaming it.”

    This insight builds on Serenity’s earlier explanation of death, comparing the afterlife to the vivid reality of dreams. It suggests that Virgil’s current existence may be just as “real” as his former physical life.

    5. “The last thought I have before I am gone completely is that in spite of what Serenity’s said—in spite of what I had believed—she’s not a lousy psychic. She’s a fucking great one.”

    Virgil’s final realization serves as both a humorous and profound conclusion, validating Serenity’s abilities while also confirming the truth of his spiritual nature as he fully transitions from the physical world.

    FAQs

    1. What realization does Virgil have about his physical state in this chapter, and what clues led him to this conclusion?

    Answer:
    Virgil realizes that he is no longer among the living—that he exists in the world but isn’t truly part of it. This epiphany comes when he attempts to grab Tallulah and his hand passes through her as if she’s made of smoke, followed by Jenna flickering in and out of visibility. He recalls previous encounters where people didn’t react to him (like at the airport or diner), Abby’s anachronistic appearance, and Ralph’s improbable age. These experiences culminate in his memory of the car crash, where he intentionally unbuckled his seatbelt before impact, confirming he had already died.

    2. How does Serenity’s description of death compare to Virgil’s actual experience of it?

    Answer:
    Serenity describes death as akin to falling asleep—a gradual detachment from the physical world, with relaxed muscles and slowed heart rate. Virgil’s experience aligns with this in part (the weightlessness, drifting awareness), but he adds a crucial dimension: the vividness of the afterlife. He notes that, like dreams, this state feels entirely real while experiencing it. His final thought—that Serenity is an excellent psychic—validates her description while acknowledging its limitations, as his transition was more complex than she portrayed.

    3. Analyze the significance of the cloud metaphor opening the chapter. How does it reflect Virgil’s journey?

    Answer:
    The cloud metaphor mirrors Virgil’s shattered assumptions about reality. Just as a child learns clouds aren’t solid but intangible water vapor, Virgil discovers his existence isn’t what it seemed. The imagery of “hurt[ling] through” a cloud parallels his sudden, violent transition in the car crash, while the “smash on the ground” foreshadows his realization of being dead. This metaphor underscores the theme of disillusionment—Virgil, like the child, must reconcile his beliefs with a harsher truth.

    4. Why does Virgil’s final thought about Serenity’s psychic abilities carry thematic weight?

    Answer:
    This moment resolves the tension between skepticism and belief that permeates the narrative. Earlier, Virgil doubted Serenity’s skills, but his confirmation that she accurately sensed his state (unlike others who couldn’t perceive him) validates the supernatural themes. It also highlights irony: a living person (Serenity) could interact with spirits, while Virgil, now a spirit, couldn’t interact with the living. This reinforces the chapter’s exploration of permeable boundaries between life and death.

    5. How does the author use sensory details in Virgil’s crash memory to convey his emotional state?

    Answer:
    The visceral details—tears on his face, the Clapton song, the act of unbuckling—reveal Virgil’s intentional surrender to death. The “glass raining,” “steering wheel boring into his chest,” and “body being thrown” create a kinetic, almost cinematic experience, contrasting with his earlier passivity. The “glorious, silent second” of flight captures his paradoxical relief in self-destruction. These details humanize his choice, making his later realization about his death more poignant.

    Note