Thirteen Reasons Why

Content Warning: The following analysis contains discussions of suicide.

Foreshadowing is a literary device that Asher uses heavily in Thirteen Reasons Why. Hannah’s narrative relies on foreshadowing as she drops hints or warnings about things that are going to happen later in the story. On her second tape, she suggests that it was “unfortunate” that Mr. Porter became her guidance counselor but refuses to expand, hinting that “that is for another tape” (55). Clay’s world is rocked by the suggestion that Mr. Porter is involved in Hannah’s death.

Foreshadowing is a key element in creating tension and suspense for readers. In the novel, foreshadowing is doubly effective because not only do readers experience anxiety and anticipation about what will happen next, but this feeling is augmented by Clay’s response to Hannah’s clues. Her hints prompt a listener to persevere and a reader to read on. On Clay’s tape, featuring the big party, Hannah teases that “you’ll have to wait until your name pops up to hear what I’m going to tell. To hear how much I tell” (204), leaving listeners in an agony of suspense.

Some of the greatest emotional suspense—sustained for the entire novel—revolves around Hannah’s death. Readers know that she is dead at the start of the book, but her voice—switching between past and present tense, often directly addressing the listener (and so the reader)—makes her seem alive. As the story advances toward Clay’s present, readers grow more anxious about when, why, and how Hannah takes her life. Her last words effectively make readers emotionally feel that she has just passed.