Contextual Effects on the Plot of Go Ask Alice - Violet

Go Ask Alice is a book published in 1971 that was structured and framed as the diary of a teenage girl. It follows her story as she begins to try different drugs. She starts off “normal,” but later meets the wrong people and participates in all sorts of dangerous activities. She gets depressed and goes through many struggles that result from her actions. Later, after the book became popular, it was found out that it wasn’t actually based on a real diary, and that Mormon youth counselor and author Beatrice Sparks made it up to try to scare teens away from drugs. The structure, time period, and author’s intentions all play different roles in how Go Ask Alice is portrayed. 

    First off, the structure is very important to how the book is read and comes across. I find this to be one of the most compelling aspects of it because it’s very convincing. You would definitely believe it was a real diary. The main character’s thoughts are random and sometimes not connected and the emotions are captured well. She talks about all the things a teenage girl would talk about, friends, romance, fights with her parents, getting a job, and a lot more. I think that the author did this to make the reader feel more empathy for the main character. 

It’s also interesting to look into how the time period factored into the telling of this story. Many drugs were being introduced to loads of people for the first time. It was easier than ever before for kids, including teens, to get their hands on them. Kids were interested in them and older folks were trying to keep them away. This tone is quite noticeable in the book and you can see it portrayed through different parts of the plotline. Ultimately, historical context is important in any piece of literature that’s not recent and it can be pretty interesting to look into. 

The author’s intentions are another thing that can explain how the story is written. I have read the book both before and after knowing about the author and it does change your understanding and thoughts on things such as the word choice, characters, and plot development. It does make me wonder what the story would be like if it was written by someone else and how much of a role bias plays.

Overall, despite all these things I think that Go Ask Alice is a really good book because of its sloppy structure and true-to-life feeling, although it’s not actually true. It’s a read I enjoy a lot! It’s interesting to analyze the story’s context, but it’s just as interesting to read and enjoy it for yourself.

Works Cited:

Go Ask Alice. New York, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1971.