What Charlie perceives in himself as a cowardly nature causes him a lot of self-hatred, and he gets angry at himself when he is too timid to stand up for either Eliza or Jeffery when they are targeted by neighborhood bullies. Charlie adopts this phrase and repeats it to himself many times throughout the novel, as when he sits still even though he is terrified of the spider that is on him, and when he lies to his parents about where he has been all night. When the boys hang out for the first time, Jasper tells Charlie: 'You got to get brave' (23). In many ways, Jasper is a model of courageous behavior for Charlie. The theme of courage is central to Jasper Jones, and the book as a whole can be framed as the story of how Charlie learns to be courageous. Their love for Laura and proximity to her situation causes them to feel as though they could have saved her from her eventual fate. Furthermore, Jasper and Eliza both feel culpable for Laura's death, although the only two people who had a hand in the death were Laura and Mr. Discussing the Vietnam War, he says it's hard to know who to blame since it is so far away, and 'the less you know, the further away you are, the easier it is to shrug and tut and move on' (126). He wonders about whether one can be closer or further away from a wrong, and how that affects culpability. He is terrified of the situation he has found himself in, but feels irrevocably involved once he has helped Jasper throw Laura's body into the dam. When Jasper takes him to see Laura's body at the beginning of the novel, Charlie himself has to deal with this question.

This seeming need for scapegoats underlines one of Jasper Jones' main themes: the problem of culpability and how individuals and society bear blame. Lu is also attacked and called racial slurs by Corrigan townspeople. Lu is attacked by another member of the community, who blames her for the death of her son who died in the war.

The novel is set in the hight of the Vietnam war. Likewise, Jeffrey and his family are also scapegoated and alienated in Corrigan due to their Vietnamese heritage. Jasper Jones becomes the perfect scapegoat, as he represents the stereotypical “bad boy.” But Jasper himself is not innocent in this regard, creating a scapegoat for himself in the person of Mad Jack. Every society has its scapegoat, to whom they transfer their collective guilt in order to unload their own culpability. As Charlie notes, 'For some folks, it's easier to condemn another man than have the strength to right your wrongs' (213).

Author of jasper jones