History: Main / BarriersOfABrokenSoul

[[quoteright:332:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/barriersofabrokensoul_1624.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:332:Every ending leads to a new beginning.]]

Barriers of a Broken Soul is a story by Joey Crump that takes drama and adds some philosophical bent to it. Divided into four parts, each with its own ThemeNaming, chronicles the story of a boy named Kevin.
 
The plot is primarily about how Kevin grows through his interactions with others - namely his close friends. As the story progresses, Kevin learns a lot of things about himself and about his friends, and about friendship in general. It goes deep into philosophical territory near the end, and each of the characters is examined as we learn their deepest flaws.

The story is somewhat unique for its structure, three-dimensional characters, and somewhat vague setting. Each chapter is relatively short, but there are a lot of them, leading to the ability to quickly read a chapter when short on time. The characters are very fleshed-out, and are as human as the reader is. The setting is vague, primarily to keep the reader focused on the psychological states of the characters. Also of interest is that there is no true antagonist - things may go wrong, but none of the characters is inherently bad, possibly just a little messed up.

The story has several themes running through it, the primary one being growth - the characters all grow throughout the story, and your perceptions of them grow as you learn more about them. Another big theme is the deconstruction of perfection - how nothing is really perfect, and why you shouldn't think so. One more primary theme is that of birth - the parts are named after stages of pregnancy, and reference the way Kevin approaches his own "rebirth" - as everyone does at times in their lives.

The story can be found at https://sites.google.com/site/barriersofabrokensoul/.

Spoilers Ahoy! This story has several big plot twists, and you may not want them spoiled for you. In addition, just reading about the characters here is no fun. You're better off reading the story first, since characterization is one of the most important features, and by learning about them here, you spoil much of the plot for yourself. You Have Been Warned!

!!This book provides examples of:

* AllTakeAndNoGive: Sarah is like this.
* ArcWords: Anything about death, birth, growth, etc. Also, "Don't you care about me anymore?" "Perfect" is another big one.
* {{Backstory}}: All of the characters have one.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: [[spoiler:Sarah.]]
* BetterAsFriends: Kevin and Eris. [[spoiler:Kevin and Ayala.]] Notably, NOT [[spoiler:Kevin and Sarah.]]
* BlatantLies: Sarah when [[spoiler:telling Kevin she's a virgin. Even when he tells her he knows the truth.]]
* BoyMeetsGirl: Cynical, depressed boy meets cheery, upbeat girl.
* BreakTheCutie: [[spoiler: Kevin.]]
* BreakHisHeartToSaveHim: [[spoiler:Ayala.]]
* CharacterDevelopment: Everywhere.
* CriticalPsychoanalysisFailure: Kevin [[spoiler:to Sarah]] and Eris [[spoiler:to Ayala.]]
* CrypticallyUnhelpfulAnswer: [[spoiler: Kevin's internal monologuer.]]
* DidNotGetTheGirl: Kevin, at the very beginning. Also, Holden to Sarah. [[spoiler:Or so you thought.]]
* DrivenToSuicide: How the story starts. [[spoiler:And nearly ends.]]
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Part of the OpeningMonologue.
* FirstGirlWins: Defied. Eris and Kevin never become more than friends. 
* FreudianExcuse: Every character has one.
* FriendVersusLover: A main plot element.
* HorribleJudgeOfCharacter: Kevin. [[spoiler:Also Eris in relation to Ayala.]]
* JerkassFacade: [[spoiler:Holden.]]
* JustFriends: Kevin and Eris. Also, Kevin and Ayala. [[spoiler:For now. Maybe.]]
* LastGirlWins: Defied.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: Kevin and Ayala. [[spoiler:Or maybe just Ayala. Or maybe neither of them.]]
* LoveConfession: Sarah, at the perfect moment. [[spoiler:Kevin, at the worst possible moment.]]
* LoveEpiphany: Kevin has this when [[spoiler:he thinks about the prospect of prom with Ayala.]]
* LoveInterests: Kevin and Sarah. [[spoiler:Also Ayala. Maybe.]] [[spoiler: Also {{Deconstructed}}.]]
* LoveMakesYouCrazy: Kevin. [[spoiler:Especially when he kisses his best friend in public. Oops!]]
* MeaningfulEcho: "Don't you care about me anymore" [[spoiler:Defied by Eris.]]
* MiseryBuildsCharacter: One of the major themes.
* NiceGuysFinishLast: Poor Kevin.
* NoodleIncident: What exactly are Eris and Holden hiding at the end?
* OpeningMonologue: Part of the EstablishingCharacterMoment.
* OppositesAttract: Kevin and Sarah.
* RealityEnsues: A common Theme
* RomanticRunnerUp: [[spoiler: Kevin.]]
* SacredFirstKiss: Kevin and Sarah.
* SoHappyTogether: Outright stated by both Kevin and Sarah. [[spoiler:Later {{Deconstructed}}.]]
* TalkingInYourDreams: Kevin, usually after important events.
* ThatManIsDead: Kevin after [[spoiler:he makes amends with himself and averts his own suicide attempt.]]
* TheBigDamnKiss: Kevin and Sarah, and it's perfect. [[spoiler:Kevin and Ayala...kind of.]]
* TheChewToy: Kevin.
* TheCynic: Kevin. 
* TokenRomance: Averted. Kevin and Sarah's relationship is a large part of the story.
* TookALevelInJerkass: Holden sometimes, [[spoiler:Kevin while with Sarah, and Sarah to Kevin.]]
* UnderstandingBoyfriend: Kevin. [[spoiler:Not that it helps.]]
* UngratefulBastard: [[spoiler:Sarah.]]
* UnresolvedSexualTension: Ayala. [[spoiler:At first.]]
* UnrequitedLoveLastsForever: Averted, then [[spoiler:played straight, then averted again (maybe).]]
* WasItAllALie: Invoked by [[spoiler:Kevin.]]
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Kevin and [[spoiler: most of his friends. It gets better.]]
* YouAreNotAlone: Eris to Kevin at the end. Also, [[spoiler:Ayala.]]

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