43 pages • 1 hour read
Click
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Symbols & Motifs
“Click”
The word “click” is a homonym for “clique,” and this motif recurs throughout the graphic novel. When Olive first learns about cliques, she doesn’t fully understand the concept. Aunt Molly draws a creative comparison between the two words, emphasizing that a clique forms because its members “click” with each other by bonding over a shared interest or topic. Olive dreams about the word “click,” imagining it as a kind of transformative sound effect that suddenly redefines her identity to make her conform to a specific group. However, the concept of “clicking” with a group of people feels oppressive to Olive, and in the dream sequence, it transforms her in ways that do not honor the different aspects of her personality.
At the end of the novel, when Olive reflects on how she came up with the idea of hosting, she returns to the idea of clicking, telling her friends that the idea “clicked” with her interests and desires. After exploring and researching different ways to interact with the newly formed cliques, Olive finds a solution that suits her unique personality and allows her to meaningfully support her different friends. She realizes that she has learned what it feels like for something to “click” socially, and her true success comes when she decides to chart her own social course.
Hosting
The concept of hosting is an important symbol in the graphic novel because it represents the kind of social role that fits Olive best. At first, Olive is not sure where she fits socially. The variety show creates a dynamic in which students break off into groups that are centered on a shared interest or extracurricular activity, and in the process, these groups inadvertently exclude anyone who does not clearly fit.
When Olive first watches the old television variety shows with Aunt Molly, she sees a model for how she might interact with these clearly defined groups. The hosts of the shows reflect Olive’s personality; they are friendly and confident, floating from group to group and offering supportive words with a sense of humor. Olive’s easygoing and friendly nature immediately makes her a perfect fit for this role. When she practices hosting, she has fun and finds it easy.
Dream Sequences
Dream sequences are a structural motif that occurs multiple times throughout the narrative. Each sequence shows a visual and impressionistic anecdote in which Olive contemplates a problem that is bothering her or experiments with a new social dynamic or identity. In the first daydream, Olive imagines participating in all the variety show groups that have so far excluded her. This daydream illustrates her dejection, articulating what she wants and explaining why she feels so lonely. The sequence also subtly foreshadows the challenge of reconciling her desire to be included with her need to remain an autonomous individual.
The next dream sequence features a more intense emotional exploration as Olive subconsciously works through the reasons why she does not really want to join any specific group. In this dream, she “clicks” into place with each different group, watching her clothing and identity transform to meet the expectations of each group. By the end of the dream, she feels pulled in all directions and wears mismatched clothes that don’t quite fit anywhere. The dream allows her to realize that she doesn’t want to choose just one group.
In the last dream sequence, Olive explores what hosting would look like by imagining a show called “The Olive Hour,” where she playfully introduces all the different acts in the variety show while showing off her own individual sense of humor. This idea “clicks” for her, and she suddenly feels empowered as she ends the performance surrounded by a cheering crowd of friends. This scene reverses the early dream sequence panel, in which she is surrounded by the word “click.” In the morning when she wakes up, she feels rested and excited. Working out her social experiment in her dream therefore changes how she feels, both physically and emotionally.
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