Bank robbery
The bank robbery executed by the 39-year old woman symbolizes security loopholes. Financial institutions are mostly guarded by authorities to ensure the safety of the workers and customers executing financial transactions. The fact that one woman robber can bring the operations of the whole bank to a stop symbolizes security bridges within the financial institutions. Consequently, the bank employees, customers and banked money are all unsafe.
The cops
The cops are a symbol of determination and dedication. Jim and Jack are depicted as individuals who are determined to uncover the identity of the woman robber. Despite Jack's doubt about his father's ability, Jim, in executing the investigation, at last, they discover that the bank robber is a woman aged 39-years with a history of life frustrations that drove her into crime.
The hostages
The people taken hostage for hours in the apartment by the bank robber symbolize hopelessness. The reader learns that only one woman robber takes more than eight people hostage. Therefore, the inability of the hostages to defend themselves against one woman robber symbolizes futility.
The symbolism of life frustrations
Crime symbolizes life frustrations. For instance, the woman robber is a 39-year old woman who has been pushed into crime by life discomforts. The woman lost her job, home and was divorced from her husband. Meeting her child's needs becomes unbearable, and the only way to get money is through stealing. Therefore, the woman takes the dangerous decision of becoming a bank robber, but her first attempt fails miserably.
