Structure

Title

The title of the short story “Slut Trouble” by Beejay Silcox does not immediately indicate what the story is about. However, the term “slut”, which is a derogatory term used about women who are perceived as sexually promiscuous, suggests that the story will deal with how society sees certain women.

The title is a repetition of a statement made by Megan’s father, Mr Henderson:  

Mr Henderson says that only sluts get into the kind of trouble Kimberly Watson has clearly gotten herself into.
‘What kind of trouble is that?’ I ask him.
‘Slut trouble, Laura, slut trouble.’ (ll. 87-90)

This reveals the meaning of the word “trouble” in the title – Mr Henderson believes that Kimberly Watson, the second kidnapping victim, is a woman whose loose morals led to her being kidnapped. Mr Henderson’s sentiment seems to be shared by Laura’s mother, who calls Kimberly a “‘Bloody stupid girl’” (l. 81) when she hears about her kidnapping. However, while Mr Henderson seems to blame and judge Kimberly because of her morals, Laura’s mother’s words indicate that she just thinks Kimberly was naive and foolish. Their prejudice is probably fuelled by the fact that Kimberly was an actress and was last seen outside a bar (ll. 79-80). In that way, she poses a contrast to the first victim, Julie-Anne. 

Laura and her friend Megan quickly adopt their parents’ attitude towards Kimberly. Megan states that she “ ‘deserves whatever she gets’ ” (l. 102), and then, alongside Laura, enacts Kimberly’s kidnapping in a violent way: “When I am Kimberly all he says is: ‘Slut.’ I do not swoon. I am pushed.” (ll. 114-115)

The title could, therefore, also hint at the “trouble” experienced by women who are perceived as having loose sexual morals – being labelled in negative way by society and blamed for the abuse and violence they might encounter.  

Beginning

The story begins by creating the setting and circumstances - a town in which a girl is kidnapped: “The first girl is taken on the second weekend of the school holidays. Her name is Julie-Anne Marks” (l. 1).

In the exposition, the narrator further describes the setting – the town is full of posters of Julie-Anne, and the search for her takes up a full page in the newspaper (ll. 2-6). Laura’s attention to these details is a foreshadowing element for her fascination – later turned into envy – for Julie-Anne.

A backstory about the narrator and her friend Megan (ll. 7-10) tells us that the girls look very similar because of their hair and that they wear matching hairstyles. The fact that Megan instructs Laura to match her hairstyle is also a foreshadowing element for the dynamic in their relationship, in which Megan dominates Laura. The backstory of the girls’ relationship is further developed as the narrator explains that they are in a competition: “Megan and I are having a competition to see whose will be the longest by the end of the year. (…)” (ll. 13-14)

Mr Henderson, Megan’s father, sometimes lets the girls drink: “Mr Henderson lets each of us have a half tumbler of red wine when I sleep over, so long as we promise not to t...