To say there had been a loss was ludicrous; one lost a shoe or a set of keys. You did not suffer the death of a child and say there was a loss. There was a catastrophe. A devastation. A hell.
The quote highlights the profound difference between minor losses and the unimaginable grief experienced when a child dies. It emphasizes that referring to such a tragedy merely as a "loss" minimizes the severity of the event. Losing a child is far more than a simple absence; it represents a deep devastation that fundamentally alters a family's life.
In this context, the author, Jodi Picoult, seeks to convey the intensity of emotional pain that accompanies such a profound event. The terminology used illustrates how language can sometimes fail to capture the true extent of sorrow and suffering, reinforcing the idea that some experiences are so devastating that they deserve their own language.
