little girls
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This thesis is a novel-length creative interpretation of the ethical implications characterized by J.L. Mackie in Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong (1997). J.L Mackie’s Error Theory proposes that morality is like a secondary property in science: morality seems implicit in the external world but is merely our own subjective projection of beliefs onto the world. The protagonist of little girls has no name and her identity is purely a product of others’ projections onto her. The narrative builds towards the consequences for characters based on their response to societal projections of morality. Tiffany actively rejects projections, Felix projects onto others without consideration of the consequences, Cozette is considerate but unable to see beyond her own experiences. What sets into motion the events of the novel is the narrator giving a blow job to her neighbor at a young age, in a town heavily governed by rigid, antiquated Catholic moral codes.