Jane 

JANE DOE:

By Liv

“Jane Doe, the one unidentified body of the Cyclone roller coaster disaster. Everyone knew everyone in Uranium, but no one could recall this member of the choir. There were rumors of a girl who joined at the last minute but as the choir conductor Father Markus died of a heart attack seven hours after the accident, there was no one left to verify. Some believe that perhaps she was never in the choir at all. I never read her fortune, I sadly cannot tell you. All one knows for certain is that a body was found in a Saint Cassian uniform, without a head. So, a mystery,” (59). 

“Her name is Penny Lamb, born April 7th. Aries: The Lucky Nature,” (77).  

Jane grapples with the fact that no one, including herself, knows who she is. However, she is determined to find out and to make meaning of her existence, and she is the one who is rewarded with resurrection by the end of the story because her classmates empathize with her, and perceive her as more of a “blank slate”, to be able to go back and start anew, almost creating a new life and legacy for herself and re-discovering who she is and what she wants, as well as to create her own meanings of life. 

The world of Jane’s song is inspired by Tom Waits and swing jazz, specifically the song ‘The Black Rider’ from Tom Waits, a circus-like theme underscoring Waits’ lyrics painting the picture of a dark carnival, where really, the carnival is just real life, with tragedies happening all around that almost feel unreal and far off, like some carnivals can be. This section of ‘The Ballad of Jane Doe’ is supposed to be more haunting, lamenting, and lovely-sounding, whereas the more swing jazz section represents more of her moments of rage toward not knowing who she is and searching for the meaning of her life and not getting anywhere with it, as well as questioning why this had to happen to her, as the music loosens up a bit and becomes more intense in this transition. 

Click here to read more about the world of Jane Doe’s song. 

Click on the image below to find an editable playlist of songs in the style of/songs that inspired Jane's songs! Please feel free to add to this during the process as you discover more that remind you of your character.

Below, you will find a direct link to an editable Pinterest board. Feel free to add images throughout the process that remind you of your character!

Questions to consider:

Even though Jane doesn’t know who she is and she feels that she may never know, why is it so important to her to know? Why is she still so hopeful to make meaning of her life? In her song, Jane admits that she knows everyone will die one day (“we all know the worms must be fed”), yet she knows it is still worth trying to discover life’s meaning at all, though especially her own–what do you make of this? 

How does Jane feel about not knowing who she is? What emotions does she mostly explore and when do these shifts between each occur? Even still, is she hopeful, and what helps her to tap into this sense of hope despite her tragic situation?